title: A survey of Sydney general practitioners' management of patients with chronic hepatitis B.
abstract: To examine the chronic hepatitis B (CHB) assessment and management practices of general practitioners in the Sydney and South Western Sydney Local Health Districts, areas with a high prevalence of CHB, and to obtain their views on alternative models of care.
  
  
  
  We used a descriptive, cross-sectional study design to survey GPs who had seen at least one patient aged 18 years or over who had been notified as having CHB to the Public Health Unit between 1 June 2012 and 31 May 2013. There were 213 eligible GPs; the response rate was 57.7%.
  
  
  
  The CHB assessment, management and referral practices of the GPs, and their opinions about different models of care.
  
  
  
  Most GPs (78.9%) were at least reasonably confident about managing CHB. GPs were generally most comfortable with a model of care that involved initial referral to a specialist; managing CHB without specialist input or with only review by a specialised nurse practitioner were less popular.
  
  
  
  These results suggest that barriers, including dependence on specialist input, still hinder the appropriate assessment and management of CHB patients by GPs. Well designed and targeted support programs that include specialist support are needed if there is to be a successful shift to an increased role for GPs in the model of care for managing CHB.
authors.affiliation: Public Health Unit, Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, NSW zeina.najjar@sswahs.nsw.gov.au.
authors.forename: Zeina
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Najjar
authors.affiliation: Public Health Unit, Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, NSW.
authors.forename: Leena
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.affiliation: AW Morrow Gastroenterology and Liver Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, NSW.
authors.forename: Janice
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pritchard-Jones
authors.affiliation: AW Morrow Gastroenterology and Liver Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, NSW.
authors.forename: Simone I
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Strasser
authors.affiliation: Liverpool Hospital, Sydney, NSW.
authors.forename: Miriam T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Levy
authors.affiliation: General Practice Unit, South West Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, NSW.
authors.forename: Siaw-Teng
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Liaw
authors.affiliation: WHO Collaborating Centre for Viral Hepatitis, VIDRL, Doherty Institute, Melbourne, VIC.
authors.forename: Benjamin C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Cowie
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D058005:General Practitioners / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009517:New South Wales / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires