UK Physicians "Unconfident" About CHF Management

A new survey conducted in the UK shows that general practitioners in that country are generally "unconfident and cautious" about managing patients with heart failure and those who have suffered a myocardial infarction. The survey found that many doctors felt they needed more guidance on the practical aspects of management, particularly diagnostic investigations, which would enable them to be more confident about treating underlying causes.

The survey was conducted by three data research organizations, Prognosis, Milpro and Meditex, and was supported by an educational grant from Zeneca Pharmaceuticals. A total of 200 GPs were consulted during the survey, between September and October 1994. A secondary target of the survey was to determine GPs' views on the role of ACE inhibitors in the management of CHF and post-MI patients. Also, a Straight Talk advisory panel has been set up, both to formulate the survey and implement its findings, consisting of GPs, a consultant cardiologist and a geriatrician, and supported by pharmacists, a practice nurse, medical advisor and health economist.

Diagnosis & Interventions Factors which would lead a GP to admit heart failure patients were cited as younger patients with complications or patients with chest pain. However, the survey also found that prevailing social factors would also influence the GP to admit certain patients, for example, if they lived alone or had no-one to care for them. Some GPs expressed concerns about the accuracy of diagnoses and suitable treatment regimens for heart failure.