Rural secondary school students living in a small community: their attitudes, beliefs and perceptions towards general practice.
OBJECTIVE
To study the attitudes and beliefs towards general practice of rural secondary school students, in particular, their perception of the barriers to the effective delivery of primary health care.


METHODS
Students attending a government-funded secondary school in a rural community of less than 4000 people.


METHODS
250 students in years 7-12 were surveyed, with 177 (71%) replying, 45% of these being male.


METHODS
Cross-sectional, self-administered questionnaire survey.


RESULTS
The study found that most students value general practitioners (GPs) as valuable sources of health care, feel they have reasonable access to care and in most instances appear to attend appropriately for their health problems. Most felt their doctor would be an empathetic listener, would provide sufficient time to provide effective care and communicated in a language they could understand. Confidentiality issues were considered important, especially by females.


CONCLUSIONS
Although students have very positive attitudes about general practice, the findings could be used to improve a number of GP services for young people in small rural communities. This is particularly so for presentations which require a high degree of confidentiality and skillful counselling, such as psychological problems and risk-taking behaviours.
Atkinson
Kaye
K
RACGP Training Program (Victoria), Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Schattner
Peter
P
Margolis
Stephen
S
D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005194:Family Practice / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013334:Students / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014739:Victoria