Use of thermometers in general practice
- PMID: 1581720
- PMCID: PMC1882298
- DOI: 10.1136/bmj.304.6832.961
Use of thermometers in general practice
Abstract
Objective: To identify the attitudes of general practitioners towards the use of thermometers in general practice.
Design: Postal questionnaire survey.
Setting: All general practitioners in the catchment area of Frimley Park Hospital, Surrey.
Subjects: 145 general practitioners.
Main outcome measures: Answers to questions covering a variety of aspects concerning the use of thermometers in general practice.
Results: 116 (80%) doctors replied. Seven doctors did not have any method of taking a patient's temperature; up to 12 more doctors did not use their thermometers and 56 doctors used them infrequently, less than once a fortnight. Mercury glass thermometers were most commonly used (80 doctors; 69%), but only 8% of doctors used them correctly. Six doctors failed to clean their thermometers between patients. The study failed to identify the roles of axillary and rectal temperature readings.
Conclusion: There is a wide variation in attitudes towards the use of thermometers in general practice.
Comment in
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Measuring temperatures.BMJ. 1992 May 23;304(6838):1381. doi: 10.1136/bmj.304.6838.1381. BMJ. 1992. PMID: 1524598 Free PMC article. No abstract available.
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