title: Diagnosis of cognitive impairment and the assessment of driving safety: a survey of Canterbury GPs.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess how GPs in Canterbury determine the driving ability of their older patients with cognitive impairment.
  
  
  METHODS
  A 10-item questionnaire was sent to 514 Canterbury GPs via the mail system of three Primary Health Organisations. GPs could either post or fax back responses anonymously and were also able to add their own comments.
  
  
  RESULTS
  185 GPs returned completed questionnaires (36% response rate). Six of 10 items were rated in the middle of the response range, indicating a middling level of agreement. All but three GPs reported using a cognitive screening test and most talked to their patients about the need to plan for driving cessation. GPs did not frequently report referring for on-road driving assessments and many commented they would appreciate a more structured guideline with specific recommendations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is room for improvement in the amount of information provided to GPs about how to best assess older patients with cognitive impairment for fitness to drive. Recommendations of specific cognitive screens and a flowchart format would be a valuable addition.
authors.affiliation: Psychiatric Service for the Elderly, The Princess Margaret Hospital, Cashmere Road, Christchurch 8022, New Zealand. petra.hoggarth@cdhb.govt.nz.
authors.forename: Petra A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Hoggarth
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001333:Automobile Driver Examination; D001334:Automobile Driving; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D058005:General Practitioners; D006801:Humans; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009520:New Zealand; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D012449:Safety; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires