Acta clinica Croatica, Vol. 61. No. 2, 2022.
Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.20471/acc.2022.61.02.07
Family Physician Opinions on Electronic Tools and Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Guideline Availability, Usage and Adherence in Croatia
Ino Kermc
; Zagreb-Centar Health Center, Zagreb, Croatia
Danko Relić
; University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia;
Zlata Ožvačić Adžić
; Zagreb-Centar Health Center, Zagreb, Croatia; University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia
Milan Milošević
; University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia
Richard J. Schuster
; School of Public Health, University of Haifa, Mount Carmel, Haifa, Israel
Venija Cerovečki
; Zagreb-Centar Health Center, Zagreb, Croatia; University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Family physicians are burdened with a great number of guidelines considering different
conditions they treat. We analyzed opinions of family physicians on electronic tools which help
managing chronic conditions and their influence on patient care by cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention
guideline availability, usage and adherence. A descriptive study was performed on a convenient
sample of 417 (response rate 56.0%) Croatian family physicians. Data on physician characteristics and
availability, usage and adherence to CVD prevention guidelines were analyzed. The χ2-test was used
for comparisons. Significance was defined as p<0.05. Family physicians who used additional electronic
tools in Electronic Health Record software on more than 80% of their patients had CVD prevention
guidelines more available (p<0.01) and used them more frequently (p<0.01). A group who used
electronic tools on more than 80% of their patients had CVD prevention guidelines available to them
frequently and used them on more than 60% of their patients, also strictly adhering to the guidelines
(p<0.01). Physicians who used CVD prevention guidelines on more than 60% of their patients spent
more time doing patient education (p=0.036). Using electronic tools helps Croatian family physicians
in terms of availability, usage and adherence to the guidelines and quality improvement.
Keywords
Family practice; Electronic tools; Guidelines
Hrčak ID:
284674
URI
Publication date:
1.8.2022.
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