Interactions: understanding people and process in prescribing in primary care

Internationally, primary care is under pressure. In 10 developed nations surveyed for the 2015 Commonwealth report, primary care physicians reported their struggle to find ways to care for ageing populations with complex healthcare needs.1 Practice consultation rates, average consultation duration and total patient-facing clinical workload have increased substantially in primary care in recent years.2 Increases in demand have not been matched by growth in either funding or in workforce: in the UK alone, the shortage of general practitioners (GPs) is expected to worsen from 3300 in 2015 to 8000 by 2020. Over and above rising demand, factors such as advances in technology, the shifting workload from secondary to primary care, and patients' growing health and social care needs (including more complicated drug regimens and challenging national clinical standards) have all added to complexity.3

Much discussion has focused on how to increase the supply...

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