Presenting the primary care team to the public: a qualitative exploration of general practice websites.

BACKGROUND

Increasing demand and expanded primary care provision, coupled with a reduced GP workforce, present challenges for primary care. New workforce models aim to reduce GP workload by directing patients to a variety of alternative clinicians. Concurrently, the principle of patient choice in relation to healthcare providers has gained prominence. It is, therefore, necessary to provide patients with sufficient information to negotiate access to appropriate primary healthcare professionals.

AIM

To explore how practice websites present three exemplar healthcare professional groups (GPs, advanced nurse practitioners [ANPs], and practice nurses [PNs]) to patients and the implications for informing appropriate consultation choices.

DESIGN AND SETTING

Qualitative thematic analysis of a sample of general practice websites.

METHOD

In total, 79 accessible websites from a metropolitan district in the north of England were thematically analysed in relation to professional representation and signposting of the three identified professional groups.

RESULTS

Information about each group was incomplete, inconsistent, and sometimes inaccurate across the majority of general practice websites. There was a lack of coherence and strategy in representation and direction of website users towards appropriate primary healthcare practitioners.

CONCLUSION

Limited and unclear representation of professional groups on general practice websites may have implications for the direction of patients to the wider clinical healthcare team. Patients may not have appropriate information to make choices about consulting with different healthcare practitioners. This constitutes a missed opportunity to signpost patients to appropriate clinicians and enhance understanding of different professional roles. The potential for websites to disseminate information to the public is not being maximised.