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Managing eye conditions in primary care: a survey
Author(s) -
Rahimzadeh Mana
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
acta ophthalmologica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.534
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1755-3768
pISSN - 1755-375X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1755-3768.2020.0022
Subject(s) - medicine , feeling , eye care , primary care , optometry , training (meteorology) , general practice , medical emergency , family medicine , psychology , social psychology , physics , meteorology
Purpose Patients with acute ophthalmic symptoms often present first to their general practitioner (GP). It is therefore essential that GPs are confident in managing eye conditions by the end of their training programme. Methods The survey was designed and emailed to practices across the country. There were 32 responses (12 GP registrars, 11 GPs with 0–10 years experience and 9 GPs with more than 10 years experience). Results 50% ( n = 16) of the GPs report feeling ‘not very comfortable’ and 50% ( n = 16) ‘quite comfortable’ in managing eye conditions. Furthermore, in response to the questions ‘how comfortable do you feel using an ophthalmoscope’ and ‘how comfortable do you feel ruling out optic disc oedema’, average scores were 4.9 and 3.8 out of ten, respectively. When asked how the training programme prepared them for managing eye conditions, 31% ( n = 10) report ‘not well at all’. Commonly suggested improvements to the current training programme included more time in eye casualty or clinics and training days delivered by ophthalmologists. Conclusions There is evidence that patients with acute eye conditions are poorly assessed in primary care, leading to treatment delays and reported cases of permanent sight loss. This survey supports existing evidence that there is insufficient confidence amongst GPs in managing eye conditions. More training is clearly required as part of the general training programme.