title: Development of pre-consultation prevention summary and reminder sheets for patients: preliminary study of acceptability and sustainability.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Patients attending general practices receive about 60% of indicated preventive services. Patients do not know which preventive services are indicated for them and want their GPs to offer those services.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients arriving for consultations in three general practices received individualised prevention summary sheets. Acceptability was assessed by patient survey. Sustainability was assessed by the number of sheets printed over time.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seventy-two percent of patients discussed the advice on their sheet in the consultation, and 89% wanted to receive the sheets in the future. Practices printed 8882 sheets in the 52 weeks from the start of the trial.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This new intervention seems to be acceptable and sustainable in the Australian setting. It has the potential, therefore, to increase the delivery of preventive care in general practice. A larger trial is needed to demonstrate its effect on performance of preventive activities and on patient outcomes.
authors.affiliation: MBBS, PhD, FRACGP, FACHI, General practitioner, Oakden Medical Centre, Hillcrest, SA, and University Senior Research Fellow, Discipline of General Practice, School of Population Health, The University of Adelaide, SA.
authors.forename: Oliver
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Frank
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Aylward
authors.forename: Nigel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Stocks
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001315:Australia; D005260:Female; D058006:General Practice; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011314:Preventive Health Services; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D017010:Reminder Systems