General practitioner attitudes to recall systems for cervical screening.
OBJECTIVE
To document the factors associated with general practitioner (GP) use of Pap smear reminder/recall systems and to canvass options for coordinating these GP-based systems with similar centrally based schemes.


METHODS
A questionnaire survey of a random sample of South Australian GPs.


RESULTS
259 (78%) of 334 GPs returned questionnaires. 117 (45.2%) GPs had practice-based reminder/recall systems, with a higher prevalence among metropolitan GPs with a computer and who had been in practice for less than 20 years. 91.9% of GPs reported that the central register would be of some help in ensuring regular cervical screening. 38.2% of the GPs preferred reminder letters from the register to be sent to their practice; 27.8% preferred them to be sent directly to women and 22.8% opted for letters to be sent from the register via the laboratories to their practice. 61.4% of respondents had a method of recording women with abnormal smears and 95.6% of these actively recalled such women.


CONCLUSIONS
Substantial variation exists in the use of practice-based reminder/recall systems among GPs. A central register would assist most GPs by providing a back-up reminder service to follow-up women for cervical screening.
Beilby
J J
JJ
Research and Health Promotion Unit, Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, Adelaide, SA.
Wakefield
M A
MA
Maddock
A M
AM
D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D065006:Papanicolaou Test; D010821:Physicians, Family / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011897:Random Allocation; D017010:Reminder Systems; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013021:South Australia; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014626:Vaginal Smears / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*