Introducing extended consultations for patients with severe mental illness in general practice: Results from the SOFIA feasibility study.

BACKGROUND: People with a severe mental illness (SMI) have shorter life expectancy and poorer quality of life compared to the general population. Most years lost are due to cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and various types of cancer. We co-designed an intervention to mitigate this health problem with key stakeholders in the area, which centred on an extended consultations for people with SMI in general practice. This study aimed to1) investigate general practitioners' (GPs) experience of the feasibility of introducing extended consultations for patients with SMI, 2) assess the clinical content of extended consultations and how these were experienced by patients, and 3) investigate the feasibility of identification, eligibility screening, and recruitment of patients with SMI. METHODS: The study was a one-armed feasibility study. We planned that seven general practices in northern Denmark would introduce extended consultations with their patients with SMI for 6 months. Patients with SMI were identified using practice medical records and screened for eligibility by the patients' GP. Data were collected using case report forms filled out by practice personnel and via qualitative methods, including observations of consultations, individual semi-structured interviews, a focus group with GPs, and informal conversations with patients and general practice staff. RESULTS: Five general practices employing seven GPs participated in the study, which was terminated 3 ½ month ahead of schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic. General practices attempted to contact 57 patients with SMI. Of these, 38 patients (67%) attended an extended consultation, which led to changes in the somatic health care plan for 82% of patients. Conduct of the extended consultations varied between GPs and diverged from the intended conduct. Nonetheless, GPs found the extended consultations feasible and, in most cases, beneficial for the patient group. In interviews, most patients recounted the extended consultation as beneficial. DISCUSSION: Our findings suggest that it is feasible to introduce extended consultations for patients with SMI in general practice, which were also found to be well-suited for eliciting patients' values and preferences. Larger studies with a longer follow-up period could help to assess the long-term effects and the best implementation strategies of these consultations.

Understanding primary care transformation and implications for ageing populations and health inequalities: a systematic scoping review of new models of primary health care in OECD countries and China.

BACKGROUND: Many countries have introduced reforms with the aim of primary care transformation (PCT). Common objectives include meeting service delivery challenges associated with ageing populations and health inequalities. To date, there has been little research comparing PCT internationally. Our aim was to examine PCT and new models of primary care by conducting a systematic scoping review of international literature in order to describe major policy changes including key 'components', impacts of new models of care, and barriers and facilitators to PCT implementation. METHODS: We undertook a systematic scoping review of international literature on PCT in OECD countries and China (published protocol: https://osf.io/2afym ). Ovid [MEDLINE/Embase/Global Health], CINAHL Plus, and Global Index Medicus were searched (01/01/10 to 28/08/21). Two reviewers independently screened the titles and abstracts with data extraction by a single reviewer. A narrative synthesis of findings followed. RESULTS: A total of 107 studies from 15 countries were included. The most frequently employed component of PCT was the expansion of multidisciplinary teams (MDT) (46% of studies). The most frequently measured outcome was GP views (27%), with < 20% measuring patient views or satisfaction. Only three studies evaluated the effects of PCT on ageing populations and 34 (32%) on health inequalities with ambiguous results. For the latter, PCT involving increased primary care access showed positive impacts whilst no benefits were reported for other components. Analysis of 41 studies citing barriers or facilitators to PCT implementation identified leadership, change, resources, and targets as key themes. CONCLUSIONS: Countries identified in this review have used a range of approaches to PCT with marked heterogeneity in methods of evaluation and mixed findings on impacts. Only a minority of studies described the impacts of PCT on ageing populations, health inequalities, or from the patient perspective. The facilitators and barriers identified may be useful in planning and evaluating future developments in PCT.

The SOFIA pilot trial: a cluster-randomized trial of coordinated, co-produced care to reduce mortality and improve quality of life in people with severe mental illness in the general practice setting.

BACKGROUND: People with severe mental illness (SMI) have an increased risk of premature mortality, predominantly due to somatic health conditions. Evidence indicates that primary and tertiary prevention and improved treatment of somatic conditions in patients with SMI could reduce this excess mortality. This paper reports a protocol designed to evaluate the feasibility of a coordinated co-produced care program (SOFIA model, a Danish acronym for Severe Mental Illness and Physical Health in General Practice) in the general practice setting to reduce mortality and improve quality of life in patients with severe mental illness. METHODS: The SOFIA pilot trial is designed as a cluster randomized controlled trial targeting general practices in two regions in Denmark. We aim to include 12 practices, each of which is instructed to recruit up to 15 community-dwelling patients aged 18 and older with SMI. Practices will be randomized by a computer in a ratio of 2:1 to deliver a coordinated care program or usual care during a 6-month study period. A randomized algorithm is used to perform randomization. The coordinated care program includes educational training of general practitioners and their clinical staff educational training of general practitioners and their clinical staff, which covers clinical and diagnostic management and focus on patient-centered care of this patient group, after which general practitioners will provide a prolonged consultation focusing on individual needs and preferences of the patient with SMI and a follow-up plan if indicated. The outcomes will be parameters of the feasibility of the intervention and trial methods and will be assessed quantitatively and qualitatively. Assessments of the outcome parameters will be administered at baseline, throughout, and at end of the study period. DISCUSSION: If necessary the intervention will be revised based on results from this study. If delivery of the intervention, either in its current form or after revision, is considered feasible, a future, definitive trial to determine the effectiveness of the intervention in reducing mortality and improving quality of life in patients with SMI can take place. Successful implementation of the intervention would imply preliminary promise for addressing health inequities in patients with SMI. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The trial was registered in Clinical Trials as of November 5, 2020, with registration number NCT04618250 . Protocol version: January 22, 2021; original version.

Multimorbidity and functional impairment-bidirectional interplay, synergistic effects and common pathways.

This review discusses the interplay between multimorbidity (i.e. co-occurrence of more than one chronic health condition in an individual) and functional impairment (i.e. limitations in mobility, strength or cognition that may eventually hamper a person's ability to perform everyday tasks). On the one hand, diseases belonging to common patterns of multimorbidity may interact, curtailing compensatory mechanisms and resulting in physical and cognitive decline. On the other hand, physical and cognitive impairment impact the severity and burden of multimorbidity, contributing to the establishment of a vicious circle. The circle may be further exacerbated by people's reduced ability to cope with treatment and care burden and physicians' fragmented view of health problems, which cause suboptimal use of health services and reduced quality of life and survival. Thus, the synergistic effects of medical diagnoses and functional status in adults, particularly older adults, emerge as central to assessing their health and care needs. Furthermore, common pathways seem to underlie multimorbidity, functional impairment and their interplay. For example, older age, obesity, involuntary weight loss and sedentarism can accelerate damage accumulation in organs and physiological systems by fostering inflammatory status. Inappropriate use or overuse of specific medications and drug-drug and drug-disease interactions also contribute to the bidirectional association between multimorbidity and functional impairment. Additionally, psychosocial factors such as low socioeconomic status and the direct or indirect effects of negative life events, weak social networks and an external locus of control may underlie the complex interactions between multimorbidity, functional decline and negative outcomes. Identifying modifiable risk factors and pathways common to multimorbidity and functional impairment could aid in the design of interventions to delay, prevent or alleviate age-related health deterioration; this review provides an overview of knowledge gaps and future directions.

Multimorbidity and mortality: A 15-year longitudinal registry-based nationwide Danish population study.

BACKGROUND: Knowledge about prevalent and deadly combinations of multimorbidity is needed. OBJECTIVE: To determine the nationwide prevalence of multimorbidity and estimate mortality for the most prevalent combinations of one to five diagnosis groups. Furthermore, to assess the excess mortality of the combination of two groups compared to the product of mortality associated with the single groups. DESIGN: A prospective cohort study using Danish registries and including 3.986.209 people aged ≥18 years on 1 January, 2000. Multimorbidity was defined as having diagnoses from at least 2 of 10 diagnosis groups: lung, musculoskeletal, endocrine, mental, cancer, neurological, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, kidney, and sensory organs. Logistic regression (odds ratios, ORs) and ratio of ORs (ROR) were used to study mortality and excess mortality. RESULTS: Prevalence of multimorbidity was 7.1% in the Danish population. The most prevalent combination was the musculoskeletal-cardiovascular (0.4%), which had double the mortality (OR, 2.03) compared to persons not belonging to any of the diagnosis groups but showed no excess mortality (ROR, 0.97). The neurological-cancer combination had the highest mortality (OR, 6.35), was less prevalent (0.07%), and had no excess mortality (ROR, 0.94). Cardiovascular-lung was moderately prevalent (0.2%), had high mortality (OR, 5.75), and had excess mortality (ROR, 1.18). Endocrine-kidney had high excess mortality (ROR, 1.81) and cancer-mental had low excess mortality (ROR, 0.66). Mortality increased with the number of groups. CONCLUSIONS: All combinations had increased mortality risk with some of them having up to a six-fold increased risk. Mortality increased with the number of diagnosis groups. Most combinations did not increase mortality above that expected, that is, were additive rather than synergistic.

Comorbidities in adults with asthma: Population-based cross-sectional analysis of 1.4 million adults in Scotland.

BACKGROUND: Comorbidity in people with asthma can significantly increase asthma morbidity and lower adherence to asthma guidelines. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to comprehensively measure the prevalence of physical and mental health comorbidities in adults with asthma using a large nationally representative population. METHODS: Cross-sectional analysis of routine primary care electronic medical records for 1 424 378 adults in the UK, examining the prevalence of 39 comorbidities in people with and without asthma, before and after adjustment for age, sex, social deprivation and smoking status using logistic regression. RESULTS: Of 39 comorbidities measured, 36 (92%) were significantly more common in adults with asthma; 62.6% of adults with asthma had ≥1 comorbidity vs 46.2% of those without, and 16.3% had ≥4 comorbidities vs 8.7% of those without. Comorbidities with the largest absolute increase in prevalence in adults with asthma were as follows: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (13.4% vs 3.1%), depression (17.3% vs 9.1%), painful conditions (15.4% vs 8.4%) and dyspepsia (10.9% vs 5.2%). Comorbidities with the largest relative difference in adults with asthma compared to those without were as follows: COPD (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 5.65, 95% CI 5.52-5.79), bronchiectasis (aOR 4.65, 95% CI 4.26-5.08), eczema/psoriasis (aOR 3.30, 95% CI 3.14-3.48), dyspepsia (aOR 2.20, 95% CI 2.15-2.25) and chronic sinusitis (aOR 2.12, 95% CI 1.99-2.26). Depression and anxiety were more common in adults with asthma (aOR 1.60, 95% CI 1.57-1.63, and aOR 1.53, 95% CI 1.48-1.57, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Physical and mental health comorbidities are the norm in adults with asthma. Appropriate recognition and management should form part of routine asthma care.

Mindfulness-based stress reduction in Parkinson's disease: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Mindfulness based stress reduction (MBSR) is increasingly being used to improve outcomes such as stress and depression in a range of long-term conditions (LTCs). While systematic reviews on MBSR have taken place for a number of conditions there remains limited information on its impact on individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD). METHODS: Medline, Central, Embase, Amed, CINAHAL were searched in March 2016. These databases were searched using a combination of MeSH subject headings where available and keywords in the title and abstracts. We also searched the reference lists of related reviews. Study quality was assessed based on questions from the Cochrane Collaboration risk of bias tool. RESULTS: Two interventions and three papers with a total of 66 participants were included. The interventions were undertaken in Belgium (n = 27) and the USA (n = 39). One study reported significantly increased grey matter density (GMD) in the brains of the MBSR group compared to the usual care group. Significant improvements were reported in one study for a number of outcomes including PD outcomes, depression, mindfulness, and quality of life indicators. Only one intervention was of reasonable quality and both interventions failed to control for potential confounders in the analysis. Adverse events and reasons for drop-outs were not reported. There was also no reporting on the costs/benefits of the intervention or how they affected health service utilisation. CONCLUSION: This systematic review found limited and inconclusive evidence of the effectiveness of MBSR for PD patients. Both of the included interventions claimed positive effects for PD patients but significant outcomes were often contradicted by other results. Further trials with larger sample sizes, control groups and longer follow-ups are needed before the evidence for MBSR in PD can be conclusively judged.

Vascular comorbidities in younger people with dementia: a cross-sectional population-based study of 616†245 middle-aged people in Scotland.

INTRODUCTION: There is growing evidence of an aetiological relationship between vascular risk factors and the development of dementia in later life. Dementia in the under-65s has historically been considered to be more driven by genetic factors, but previous epidemiological studies in the young have been relatively small. This study aims to determine the prevalence of vascular comorbidity in people aged <65 with dementia in comparison to the general population. METHODS: Analysis of routine clinical data from 314 (30%) general medical practices in Scotland. RESULTS: From an overall population of 616 245 individuals, 1061 cases of 'all-cause' dementia were identified (prevalence 172/100 000 population, 95% CI 161 to 182). The prevalence of dementia was higher in people with vascular morbidities, and prevalence progressively increased from 129/100 000 in people with no vascular comorbidity to 999/100 000 in people with four or more (p=0.01). The strength of association was greatest with a previous transient ischaemic attack (TIA) or stroke and chronic kidney disease (adjusted OR=3.1 and 2.9, respectively). Statistically significant, but smaller associations were seen with the presence of hypertension, diabetes, ischaemic heart disease and peripheral vascular disease (adjusted OR=1.4, 2.0, 1.9 and 2.2, respectively). DISCUSSIONS: Vascular comorbid diseases were more commonly recorded in people aged 40-64 with dementia than those without. This finding indicates that vascular disease may be more important in the aetiology of young-onset dementia than previously believed, and is of concern given the continuing rise in obesity and diabetes internationally.

A comparison of general practitioners prescribing of gluten-free foods for the treatment of coeliac disease with national prescribing guidelines.

BACKGROUND: Coeliac disease is an autoimmune disorder that is considered to affect approximately one in 100 people. In the UK, gluten-free (GF) foods can be prescribed by general practitioners (GPs) to treat this condition and there are national guidelines on the quantities of GF food an individual should receive on prescription. Information on actual prescribing behaviour by GPs, and how this compares with guideline recommendations, is scarce. The present study aimed to describe GPs prescribing practice of GF foods, within one locality in the UK, comparing this with national guidelines. METHODS: A retrospective evaluation of GP electronic medical records for all patients with a gluten-sensitive enteropathy diagnosis and/or those prescribed GF food between April 2010 and March 2011 was carried out in 16 GP practices in the west of Scotland, serving a total of 85 667 patients. RESULTS: Of 175 (0.18% of the total practice population) patients, 152 were identified with coeliac disease, eight with dermatitis herpetiformis and six with both conditions. A further nine patients received GF foods on prescriptions with no recorded diagnosis. There was a positive association between adherence to the prescribing guidelines and female sex (P < 0.0001) and (for those with a recorded diagnosis) increasing age (P = 0.001). There was no significant association between either socio-economic deprivation or co-morbidities and adherence to the prescribing guidelines. CONCLUSIONS: There was significant under prescribing of GF foods in those identified. Further research is required to establish whether these results are representative of wider practice in the UK.

Does vocational training in family medicine have an impact on antibiotic prescribing pattern?

BACKGROUND: Antibiotics overuse is common and is the major cause of antibiotic resistance. Rational use of antibiotics by GPs is essential as most health problems are exclusively dealt within primary care. Postgraduate family medicine (FM) training has become established in various countries over the last few decades but little is known about the effect of FM training on antibiotic prescribing. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether GPs with FM training prescribe less antibiotics than those without training. METHODS: GPs working in a pluralistic primary health care system took part in the 2007-08 primary care morbidity and management survey in Hong Kong and collected information of all consecutive patient encounters during predetermined weeks of data collection. Characteristics of GPs, training status, patient morbidity and antibiotic prescribing pattern were compared using multivariate regression analyses. RESULTS: One hundred and nine GPs, of whom 67 had FM training, participated in the study and recorded 69 973 health problems. The overall antibiotic prescribing rate was 8.5% and that of GPs with FM training was 5.4% compared with the 13.3% among those without. Multivariate logistic regression showed that GPs with FM training were less likely to prescribe antibiotics (odds ratio 0.68, P < 0.05). They had lower antibiotic prescribing rates when managing upper respiratory tract infections, acute bronchitis and cough but higher in treating infective conjunctivitis and acute laryngitis. CONCLUSIONS: Postgraduate FM training in Hong Kong is associated with significantly lower antibiotic prescribing rates. This supports the importance of FM training in rationalizing the use of antibiotics in Hong Kong.

Patterns of antihypertensive prescribing, discontinuation and switching among a Hong Kong Chinese population from over one million prescriptions.

To evaluate the prescription, discontinuation and switching profiles of antihypertensive agents, we studied computerized records for patients prescribed antihypertensive drugs in government primary care clinics of Hong Kong between January 2004 and June 2007, which include 1069836 antihypertensive drug visits (representing 67028 patients). The most commonly prescribed drugs were calcium channel blockers (CCBs, 49%), beta-blockers (BBs, 46%) and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs, 19%). Although thiazide diuretic prescribing was low (13%) and on the decline (from 14% in 2004 to 12% in 2007), prescription of ACEIs was rising (from 16% in 2004 to 23% in 2007); drug discontinuation was highest for BBs (21%) and lowest for CCBs (12%) and the high rates of discontinuation in BBs remained apparent after controlling for confounders. CCBs may be particularly favourable antihypertensive drugs in Chinese and the low use of thiazide diuretics warrants further clinical and cost effectiveness studies among Chinese.