Vol 35, (5) 273 - 368
Do GPs use electronic mental health resources? - a qualitative study
David Austin BBus, GradDipPsychStuds, GradDipAppSci, PhD, is a psychologist, and Senior Research Fellow, Department of General Practice, Monash University, Victoria.
Ciaran Pier BAPsych(Hons), PhD, is a psychologist, and Research Fellow, Department of General Practice, Monash University, Victoria.
Joanna Mitchell BA, MAMgt, GradDipPsych, BBScPsych(Hons), MPsychClin, is a psychologist, and Research Fellow, Department of General Practice, Monash University, Victoria.
Peter Schattner MD, MMed, FRACGP, is Clinical Associate Professor, Department of General Practice, Monash University, Victoria.
Victoria Wade BSc, DipAppPsych, MPsych, BMBS, FRACGP, is Medical Director, South Australia Divisions of General Practice, South Australia.
David Pierce MBBS, MGPPsych, MMed, FRACGP, FACPsychMed, is Research Fellow, Department of General Practice, and Rural Clinical School, University of Melbourne, Victoria.
Britt Klein BA(Hons), DPsychClin, is a psychologist, and Senior Research Fellow, Department of General Practice, Monash University, Victoria.
BACKGROUND The Better Outcomes in Mental Health Care (BOMHC) initiative encourages general practitioners to use electronic mental health resources (EMHRs) during consultation with patients requiring psychological assistance. However, there is little data on GPs’ acceptance and use of EMHRs.
METHOD Semistructured interviews were conducted with 27 GPs to determine their attitude toward EMHRs, and their use during consultation with patients.
RESULTS Few GPs reported frequently using EMHRs in consultation. Identified barriers to use included lack of familiarity with information technology, and insufficient knowledge of available resources. Identified advantages of electronic resources included high patient acceptance, time efficiency, and improved quality of information.
DISCUSSION General practitioners recognise several advantages of utilising electronic resources for managing patients with mental illness. However, GPs are not sufficiently familiar with electronic resources to use them effectively. This could be overcome by education.
Related files
Do GPs use electronic mental health resources? - a qualitative study (172Kb)
To download files on a PC: Right click the link and select 'Save Target As'.
To download files on a Mac: Hold Ctrl, click the link and select 'Download link to disk'.
Help with viewing files