Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Multicenter Study
. 2016 Jan;66(642):e40-6.
doi: 10.3399/bjgp15X688105. Epub 2015 Dec 6.

Antibiotic prescribing and patient satisfaction in primary care in England: cross-sectional analysis of national patient survey data and prescribing data

Mark Ashworth  1 , Patrick White  1 , Hannah Jongsma  1 , Peter Schofield  1 , David Armstrong  1
Affiliations
Multicenter Study

Antibiotic prescribing and patient satisfaction in primary care in England: cross-sectional analysis of national patient survey data and prescribing data

Mark Ashworth et al. Br J Gen Pract. 2016 Jan.

Abstract

Background: Concerns about adverse effects on patient satisfaction may be an important obstacle to attempts to curtail antibiotic prescribing.

Aim: To determine the relationship between antibiotic prescribing in general practice and reported patient satisfaction.

Design and setting: Retrospective cross-sectional study of general practices in England.

Method: Data were obtained from the General Practice Patient Survey (GPPS) in 2012 (2.7 million questionnaires in England; 982 999 responses; response rate 36%); the national Quality and Outcomes Framework dataset for England, 2011-2012 (8164 general practices); and general practice and demographic characteristics. Standardised measures of antibiotic prescribing volumes were obtained for each practice in England during 2012-2013, together with 12 other nationally available prescribing variables. The role of antibiotic prescribing volume was identified as a determinant of GPPS scores and adjusted for demographic and practice factors using multiple linear regression.

Results: The final dataset consisted of 7800 (95.5%) practices. A total of 33.7 million antibiotic prescriptions were issued to a registered population of 53.8 million patients. Antibiotic prescribing volume was a significant positive predictor of all 'doctor satisfaction' and 'practice satisfaction' scores in the GPPS, and was the strongest predictor of overall satisfaction out of 13 prescribing variables. A theoretical 25% reduction in antibiotic prescribing volume would be associated with 0.5-1.0% lower patient satisfaction scores, a drop of 3-6 centile points in national satisfaction ranking.

Conclusion: Patients were less satisfied in practices with frugal antibiotic prescribing. A cautious approach to antibiotic prescribing may require a trade-off in terms of patient satisfaction.

Keywords: antibiotic prescribing; antibiotics; patient experience; patient satisfaction; primary health care.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. NHS England GP patient survey. About the survey. http://www.gp-patient.co.uk/info/ (accessed 10 Nov 2015).
    1. Coenen S, Michiels B, Renard D, et al. Antibiotic prescribing for acute cough: the effect of perceived patient demand. Br J Gen Pract. 2006;56(524):183–190. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cole A. GPs feel pressurised to prescribe unnecessary antibiotics, survey finds. BMJ. 2014;349:g5238. - PubMed
    1. Lundkvist J, Akerlind I, Borgquist L, Mölstad S. The more time spent on listening, the less time spent on prescribing antibiotics in general practice. Fam Pract. 2002;19(6):638–640. - PubMed
    1. Davies SC. Annual report of the Chief Medical Officer, volume two, 2011, infections and the rise of antimicrobial resistance. London: Department of Health; 2013. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances