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MORBIDITY MONITORING IN GENERAL PRACTICE: A PILOT SCHEME IN CENTRAL NEW SOUTH WALES
Author(s) -
FISHER S.,
SWAN H. P.,
ROZALLA M. A.
Publication year - 1975
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1975.tb111330.x
Subject(s) - warrant , medicine , consolidation (business) , communicable disease , data collection , incidence (geometry) , general practice , government (linguistics) , family medicine , demography , geography , public health , nursing , business , statistics , linguistics , physics , philosophy , accounting , mathematics , finance , sociology , optics
A pilot scheme is described under which weekly reports of the number of patients seen by general practitioners for the first time with certain specified diseases (six communicable and eight non‐communicable) were received, together with additional information. One doctor reported from each of 12 towns in New South Wales, 10 in the central part of the State. The scheme was supported by a limited virological diagnostic service. A consolidation of the reports was sent weekly to all doctors and local government authorities in the areas where the information originated; the bulletin Included short informative items. A review of the first six months of operation is presented. Interviews with participating doctors at the end of that period suggested that the method of data collection used is viable. The reports from the 10 doctors in central New South Wales who participated from the beginning were analysed. They yielded prompt and significant information, most of which may not otherwise have become available. The rates of incidence and of attendances were calculated for the specified diseases and compared with such data from other sources as could be found. Overall, there was reasonable agreement, but some differences appear to warrant investigation.