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In this editorial of the Journal of General Medicine, the role of general practitioners in pandemic management is discussed. It is emphasized that general practitioners not only play an important role in individual health problems but are also indispensable in the face of collective health threats. The COVID-19 vaccination is considered a special case among vaccinations, as it does not protect against infection or transmission of the infection. However, complete vaccination provides good protection against severe progression and symptomatic illness. The decision on vaccinating the population does not lie with the doctors but with political and legal authorities. Austria has become the first country worldwide to introduce a general vaccination obligation. The vaccination obligation creates a complex situation as many doctors have problems with it. It is emphasized that doctors do not make vaccination mandatory but only vaccinate those who come to them voluntarily and wish to be vaccinated. It is pointed out that doctors can explain the benefits of vaccination and reduce fears both on a societal level and in individual encounters. It is hoped that Germany can achieve a socially meaningful vaccination coverage in a different way. [Extracted from the article]

Background: The SARS-Cov-2 outbreak in the spring of 2020 challenged the health care system, and thus primary care, on an unprecedented scale. Knowledge about the new disease was low, whereas the dynamics of knowledge generation were high and inhomogeneous. A number of new primary care tasks related to the pandemic situation emerged. Guidance in the management of COVID-19 was therefore needed, although robust evidence was not yet available. The information required concerned not only the virus and the new disease COVID-19, but also regulatory requirements and organizational issues. In this situation, a flexible, web-based information tool, easy to update and usable at the point of care, was developed at Karl Landsteiner Private University Krems and put online under the name of "COVID-19: prevention and management in primary care practices" on March 25, 2020. In a retrospective process description, we describe the needs-triggered process of developing and disseminating a practice-based tool to support practicing primary care physicians in a period of high uncertainty with an urgent need for information. Afterwards, we reflect on the learning process from a purely pragmatic to an increasingly structured approach and try to draw conclusions regarding optimization possibilities in terms of creation and dissemination., Conclusion and Outlook: In situations of high uncertainty combined with an acute need for action and decision-making, there is a significant need for information that is as reliable as possible. Science transfer must be done in such a way that information can be implemented quickly. Dissemination, as always, plays an essential role. Gaps must be accepted. A structured process of quality assurance must be established in parallel. Funds and resources for knowledge transfer should be included in future pandemic plans., Competing Interests: Die Autorinnen/Autoren geben an, dass kein Interessenkonflikt besteht., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

A German-Austrian version of the practice recommendations "Evidence-based Medicine Guidelines for Primary Care"--an international practice guidelines project originating in Finland--was first published in print in December 2005, and has been available in electronic form since January 2007 under the title "EbM--Guidelines für Allgemeinmedizin". The collection comprises more than 1000 short evidence- and experience-based practice guidelines for general medicine, thus generating an easily and very rapidly accessible, reliable and practice-oriented knowledge base for daily use and use in consultation. Links to databases and clinical guidelines provide further effortless access to evidence-based medicine tools and should help to reduce barriers between science and practice, thus changing the culture of medical decision-making. It is conceived of as a "work in progress": international co-operation and exchange as well as an integrated user feed back tool imply continuous learning on the part of the editors' from all the countries involved. With due caution, first data can be interpreted as an indication of this concept's effectiveness. Thorough evaluation and further implementation strategies are in planning stage.