Establishing a minor illness nurse in a busy general practice

Abstract

Objective: To study the feasibility of a practice nurse caring for patients with minor illnesses. Design: Nurse given training in dealing with patients with minor illnesses. Patients requesting a same day appointment were offered a nurse consultation. Setting: Group practice in Stockton on Tees. Main outcome measures: Number of consultations which required a doctor contact, treatment, and rate of reconsultation. Results: Of 696 consultations in six months, 602 (86%) required no doctor contact. 549 (79%) patients did not reconsult about that episode of illness, and 343 (50%) patients were given advice on self care only. Conclusion: Trained nurses could diagnose and treat a large proportion of patients currently consulting general practitioners about minor illness provided that the nurse has immediate access to a doctor. Key messages A nurse was trained to deal with such patients by sitting in on the duty doctor's surgery The nurse managed 86% of patients without contact with the doctor; half required a prescrip- tion signing Half of patients required only advice on self care, and 79% did not reconsult Practice nurses could successfully manage many patients requesting same day appoint- ments with their general practitioner