Tag: GP

Improving access to healthcare for and with people with multiple disadvantage

Posted on by capcbristol

General practice teams changed their services to better include patients with severe and multiple disadvantage (SMD) after facilitated collaboration with people with lived experience according to a paper published in the British Journal of General Practice. Implementing these changes brought joy and satisfaction to general practice staff and increased connections with patients and community organisations.

People sitting on a beach watching the sunset with their hands joined together to make a heart shape.

The changes which were implemented using existing funding available to general practices included:

  • using care coordinators and a micro-team to advocate and work with a specially created patient list
  • prioritising flexible access and longer appointments to patients in greater need
  • promoting a trauma-informed approach throughout the whole practice team.

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Patients face uncertainty during diagnostic process for coeliac disease

Posted on by capcbristol

Patients experience uncertainty when following the traditional diagnostic pathway for coeliac disease, according to a study published in the British Journal of General Practice (BJGP).

Close up of person having stomach pain

The study team from the Centre for Academic Primary Care, University of Bristol and NIHR ARC West suggested that GPs could improve this by:

  • keeping coeliac disease in mind as a possible diagnosis
  • sharing information on blood tests.

Researchers also discussed how the uncertainty patients experience during testing for coeliac disease needs to be addressed when considering diagnostic pathway changes, such as a move towards using only blood test results for diagnosis.

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NHS resources saved following GP practice changes based on inflammatory marker testing research

Posted on by capcbristol

Research into inflammatory marker testing has led to a reduction and rationalisation in their use by GPs in both Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG) and the South West Peninsula.

Part-filled tray of blood test tubes.
Image credit: Photo from Unsplash, by National Cancer Institute

In BNSSG alone, data suggests the research saved the local NHS nearly £115,000 and GPs more than 600 hours a year. Further savings will have come from avoiding follow-on appointments for thousands of false positives.

The research was led by Dr Jessica Watson, an academic GP at the Centre for Academic Primary Care (CAPC) at the University of Bristol, as part of her ARC West supported PhD.

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