1. The adoption of hypertension reference framework: An investigation among primary care physicians of Hong Kong.
- Author
-
Fang Y, Wang HHX, Liang M, Yeung MS, Leung C, Chan CH, Cheung W, Huang JLW, Huang J, Sit RWS, Wong SYS, and Wong MCS
- Subjects
- Adult, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Hong Kong, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Guideline Adherence, Hypertension therapy, Physicians, Primary Care, Practice Guidelines as Topic, Primary Health Care methods
- Abstract
Background: The Hong Kong Government released a Reference Framework (RF-HT) for Hypertension Care for Adults in Primary Care Settings since 2010. No studies have evaluated its adoption by primary care physicians (PCPs) since its release., Aim: We aimed to evaluate the level of PCPs' adoption of the RF-HT and the potential barriers of its use in family practice., Design and Setting: A cross-sectional study was conducted by a self-administered validated survey among all PCPs in Hong Kong through various means., Methods: We assessed the level of and factors associated with its adoption by multivariate logistic regression modelling., Result: A total of 3,857 invitation episodes were sent to 2,297 PCPs in 2014-2015. We received 383 completed questionnaires. The average score of adoption was 3.43 out of 4.00, and 47.5% of PCPs highly adopted RF-HT in their daily consultations. Male practitioners (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 0.524, 95% CI = 0.290-0.948, p = 0.033) and PCPs of public sector (aOR = 0.524, 95% CI = 0.292-0.940, p = 0.030) were significantly less likely to adopt the RF-HT. PCPs with higher training completion or being academic fellow are more likely to adopt RF-HT than those who were "nil to basic training completion" (aOR = 0.479, 95% CI = 0.269-0.853, p = 0.012) or "higher trainee" (aOR = 0.302, 95% CI = 0.093-0.979, p = 0.046). Three most-supported suggestions on RF-HT improvement were simplification of RF-HT, provision of pocket version and promoting in patients., Conclusion: Among PCP respondents, the adoption level of the RF-HT was high. These findings also highlighted some factors associated with its adoption that could inform targeted interventions for enhancing its use in clinical practice., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
- Published
- 2018
- Full Text
- View/download PDF