66% of UK physicians want higher standards of care than QOF

A survey of physicians carried out by the Doctors.net.uk web site has found that 66% of doctors who are contracted by the UK government on a General Medical Services Contract would support more demanding standards for lowering cholesterol for some patients. The study was carried out on behalf of Merck Sharp & Dohme Ltd and Schering-Plough Ltd, both UK subsidiaries of USA-headquartered drugmakers.

The cholesterol target favored by the Quality and Outcomes Framework, the standard required under the UK contract, is <5mmol/l for total cholesterol for patients with established atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD), as well as those at high risk of developing symptomatic atherosclerotic disease. However, the Joint British Societies' Guidelines on the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease in Clinical Practice (JBS2) recommends <4mmol/l for TC and <2mmol/l for low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C).

Over 90% of survey respondents also felt that diabetes patients or those who had experienced a previous cardiovascular event would benefit from the JBS2's LDL-C standard.