Comparing physical activity prescription with verbal advice for general practice patients with cardiovascular risk factors: results from the PEPPER randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Regular physical activity improves health and quality of life for people with cardiovascular risk factors. However, few studies have demonstrated the applicability of strategies in health care to promote physical activity. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate if a written physical activity prescription combined with pedometer increases physical activity over one year compared with verbal advice in patients with cardiovascular disease risk in primary care. METHODS: The randomised-controlled, interventional, 12-month PEPPER study recruited patients aged 35 to 74 years, having quarterly followed-ups for hypertension, dyslipidaemia, or diabetes, and judged insufficiently active. Seventeen practices randomised patients into either the experimental group, who received a written, personalised prescription for daily step numbers, pedometer and logbook, or control group, who received verbal advice to do at least 15 min of rapid walking or equivalent daily. The primary outcome was the change in total weekly energy expenditure measured using an accelerometer at 3 months. The secondary outcomes were changes in step count, physical activity levels, quality of life, perceived obstacles to physical activity, and biomedical indicators at 3 and 12 months. RESULTS: One hundred and twenty-one participants were randomised. Although, weekly energy expenditure did not differ between the prescription and verbal instruction group, the estimated time spent doing moderate-intensity activity was significantly higher in the prescription group than the verbal group by an average of four minutes/week (p = 0.018)(95% CI [0.7 - 7.4]) reaching 48 min after 12 months (95% CI: 8 - 89). Similarly, this was associated with a clinically, higher average step number of 5256 steps/week increase over a year (95% CI: 660 - 9852). Among the most sedentary subgroup, walking less than 5000 steps/day at baseline, an 8868 steps/week (95% CI [2988 - 14700]) increase was observed in the prescription group. CONCLUSION: Prescribing physical activity did not significantly modify total weekly energy expenditure, but slightly increased moderate-intensity activity duration and step counts, particularly among the most sedentary participants. Prescribing personalised physical activity goals encourages sedentary patients to engage in physical activity. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The PEPPER trial is registered in the US National Institutes of Health Clinical Trials Registry under number NCT02317003 (15/12/2014).

To which non-physician health professionals do French general practitioners refer their patients to and what factors are associated with these referrals? Secondary analysis of the French national cross-sectional ECOGEN study.

BACKGROUND: Multiprofessional practice is a key component in primary care. Examining general practitioner (GP) referral frequency to non-physician health professionals (NPHP) can provide information about how primary care is organised and works which is useful for policymakers. Our study aimed to describe French GP referral frequency to various NPHPs in France and identify associated factors. METHODS: This is an ancillary study to the observational, cross-sectional (ECOGEN) study conducted in 2011/2012 in France among 128 GPs. Data about consultations using the standardised International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC-2), and patient and GP characteristics were collected from 20,613 GP consultations. Referrals were identified through inductive and deductive approaches using ICPC-2 codes, keywords, and deep, open manual searches. Referral frequency was described overall and per NPHP. Patient, GP, and consultation-related factors associated with referral rates were described for the three most frequently identified NPHPs. To minimise potential sources of bias, this observational study followed the STROBE guidelines. RESULTS: French GPs referred 6.8% of patients to NPHPs, with physiotherapists, podiatrists, and nurses accounting for 85.2% of referrals. Older patients, retired patients, multiple health problems managed, and longer consultation durations were found to be associated with higher referral rates (p < 0.001). Specific trends were observed for nurse, physiotherapist, and podiatrist referrals. Women (p < 0.001) and regular patients (p = 0.002) were more likely to receive physiotherapy referrals while people with no professional activity were less likely (p < 0.001). Female GPs and those working in urban practices were more likely to issue a physiotherapy referral (p < 0.001), while GPs working in rural practices (p < 0.001) and those with higher annual consultation numbers (p = 0.002) were more likely to refer to a nurse. Working in multiprofessional centres appeared to have little impact on referral rates, being only slightly associated with podiatrist referrals (p = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: Referral frequency is more associated with patient characteristics and clinical situations than GP-related factors suggesting patients needing referral most are most often referred. Furthermore, the three NPHPs that GPs refer to the most are those for which a referral is required for reimbursement in France, suggesting that health system legislation and NPHP reimbursement are strong determinants for referrals.

Awareness of chronic liver diseases, a comparison between diabetologists and general practitioners.

BACKGROUNDS AND AIMS: Because of the high prevalence of chronic liver disease (CLD), it is crucial that general practitioners (GPs, in contact with the general population) and diabetologists (in contact with the most at-risk non-alcoholic fatty liver disease population) identify patients with advanced CLD requiring specialized management. The aim of this study was to evaluate CLD and CLD management awareness among diabetologists and GPs. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A questionnaire was sent to diabetologists within the Francophone Diabetes Society and to GPs in southern and western France. The questionnaire sounded participant characteristics and knowledge of CLD and its management. RESULTS: 678 questionnaires were completed by 500 GPs and 178 diabetologists. CLD prevalence was underestimated by 90% of GPs and 59% of diabetologists (p<0.001). For biological CLD follow-up, liver injury explorations (transaminases) were systematically included whereas severity explorations (prothrombin time, bilirubin) were prescribed for less than 50% of blood samples; GPs were more likely to prescribe severity explorations than diabetologists were (p<0.001). 74% of GPs and 97% of diabetologists (p<0.001) were familiar with non-invasive tests, Fibroscan and Fibrotest being the two most-frequently mentioned of them. In contrast, the simple blood test Fibrosis-4 was cited by less than 15% of GPs and 30% of diabetologists (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: GPs and diabetologists have limited knowledge of CLD, despite its high prevalence. Continuing medical education among GPs and diabetologists is therefore necessary to enable the discovery of patients with advanced fibrosis and early management for them so as to avoid liver-related complications.

Pre-return to work consultation and therapeutic part-time work: Cross-sectional study on level of knowledge and use by general practitioners in France.

BACKGROUND: In France, general practitioners (GPs) may use two tools specifically designed to help employees who experience difficulties in returning to work after sick leave: the pre-return-to-work (PRW) medical consultation and therapeutic part-time (TPT) work. OBJECTIVES: The objective was to investigate the level of knowledge and use of these two tools by GPs in Maine-et-Loire, France. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed using a telephone questionnaire to evaluate the level of knowledge of GPs and the use of these two tools in patients having difficulties returning to work. RESULTS: Among the 200 randomly selected GPs, 122 responded (response rate: 61%). More than half of the interviewed GPs declared they 'often' (46%) or 'always' (14%) contacted the occupational physician in these situations. Moreover, 62.2% and 32.7% believed that they had a 'vague' or 'very good' level of knowledge, and 41% and 51% declared either 'frequent' or 'regular' level of use of the PRW medical consultation, respectively. Regarding TPT work, 47% and 53% reported a 'very good' or 'vague' level of knowledge, and 41% and 51% a 'frequent' or 'regular' level of use, respectively. GPs who had a better level of knowledge of this tool reported a higher level of use (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: This study shows that while the level of knowledge and use of the PRW medical consultation and TPT work is good, it is not optimal. This could be improved by organising training courses for GPs. Obstacles to their wider use could be investigated further in a qualitative study.

Forum theater staging of difficult encounters with patients to increase empathy in students: evaluation of efficacy at The University of Angers Medical School.

BACKGROUND: Physician empathy has been associated with improved clinical outcomes and lower physician burnout. We evaluated whether forum theater (FT), a form of applied drama that allows participants to enter the performance and represent the actions associated with emotions, would foster empathy in medical students, and which underlying variables would be associated to empathy scores. METHODS: Three classes totaling 488 fourth-year medical students participated in the study. Forum theater was used to explore difficult encounters with patients and family members: announcement of cancer, fall at home of an elderly person requiring hospitalization, appointment with a patient suffering from depression, announcement of diabetes in an adolescent. The first scene was played by actors in front of a group of students, then audience members were asked to enter the performance and, by taking over the role of the "physician-actor," to explore alternative interactions. All the students followed two sessions as actors and observers in random order and were randomly assigned to FT sessions after 36 or 56 weeks of clinical rotations. They completed the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy (JFSE) anonymously. RESULTS: Students were 22.1 ± 1.5 years old (43% males). Empathy scores increased after each session: 102.0 ± 9.8 before the sessions, 106.3 ± 9.8 after session 1 and 107.8 ± 11.5 after session 2 (p <  0.05). In regression models, gender (F vs. M, + 3.0 ± 1.0, p <  0.001) and position in the session (actor vs. observer, + 2.1 ± 1.0, p < 0.05) were significant determinants of JFSE scores, whereas age, session theme, and duration of clinical rotation were not. CONCLUSION: Being an actor in forum theater was a valuable tool for enhancing empathy scores in medical students.

[Representativeness of general practice university lecturers]. / Représentativité des médecins généralistes maîtres de stage universitaires.

OBJECTIVE: In order to develop primary care research by general practice university lecturers, it was necessary to evaluate the representativeness of this group of lecturers at the Angers Faculty of Medicine. METHODS: Declarative study based on self-administered questionnaires filled in by 216 university lecturers. The questionnaire was derived from that of the regional panel of the Research, studies, evaluation and statistics directorate of 2007, investigating the sociodemographic characteristics, professional organization, activities and certain professional practices of general practitioners. University lecturers were compared to the population of the panel by means of a Chi-square test of conformity. RESULTS: A total of 181 university lecturers participated in the survey, comprising 65% of men. The proportion of women was higher among university lecturers and the 45-54years age-group was underrepresented. The university lecturers group was significantly different from the panel in terms of predominantly group practice and shorter weekly working hours. No significant difference was observed for the type of town of practice ahd the continuing medical education participation rate. CONCLUSION: University lecturers present certain specificities, partly related to the reference population used. The development of research based on such a network appears to be feasible in terms ofrepresentativeness, provided these specificities are clearly described.