[Summary of the Dutch College of General Practitioners (NHG) practice guideline on 'Diverticulitis'].

The NHG practice guideline on 'Diverticulitis' provides general practitioners with directions on the diagnosis and treatment of uncomplicated and complicated diverticulitis. Diverticulitis is primarily a clinical diagnosis which can be supported by assessment of CRP. Uncomplicated diverticulitis is strongly suspected if the patient reports the development of persistent sharp, stabbing pain in the lower left abdomen within a couple of days; if there is pressure or rebound tenderness only in the lower left abdomen; and if there are no alarm signals.

Patient safety in primary care has many aspects: an interview study in primary care doctors and nurses.

Rationale, Aims And Objectives: Scientific definitions of patient safety may be difficult to apply in routine health care delivery. It is unknown what primary care workers consider patient safety. This study aimed to clarify the concept of patient safety in primary care.

Harm caused by adverse events in primary care: a clinical observational study.

Rationale, Aims And Objectives: Patient safety in primary care is important, but not well studied. The aim of our study was to determine the actual and potential harm caused by adverse events in primary care.

Method: Observational study in two general practices, including the patients of five doctors.

Mix of methods is needed to identify adverse events in general practice: a prospective observational study.

Background: The validity and usefulness of incident reporting and other methods for identifying adverse events remains unclear. This study aimed to compare five methods in general practice.

Methods: In a prospective observational study, with five general practitioners, five methods were applied and compared.

How do older patients and their GPs evaluate shared decision-making in healthcare?

Background: Older persons represent a growing share of the population, yet very little is known about their specific healthcare needs, problems, and expectations. IMPROVE is an international research project that seeks to improve elderly persons' involvement in their healthcare. This paper analyzes perceptions of patient involvement by elderly patients and their GPs in family medicine in Slovenia.

Family practice nurses supporting self-management in older patients with mild osteoarthritis: a randomized trial.

Background: Supporting self-management intends to improve life-style, which is beneficial for patients with mild osteoarthritis (OA). We evaluated a nurse-based intervention on older OA patients' self-management with the aim to assess its effects on mobility and functioning.

Methods: Randomized controlled trial of patients (> or = 65 years) with mild hip or knee OA from nine family practices in the Netherlands.

Do elderly patients feel more enabled if they had been actively involved in primary care consultations?

Objective: This study aimed to determine whether older patients' enablement was associated with their evaluation of the level of their involvement in primary care consultations.

Methods: Secondary analysis of data from an international cross-sectional study in seven European countries (n=625 patients). Patient enablement, preference for involvement in the consultation and evaluation of involvement in the consultation were measured with validated questionnaires.

Evaluation of an intervention designed to enhance involvement of older patients in their own care.

Objective: To implement a programme for involvement of older patients aged 70+ in general practice, and to detect quality changes after its implementation.

Methods: The study was performed in 11 European countries as an uncontrolled before-and-after study, in which a number of GPs and patients answered a questionnaire before and after receiving an intervention. The intervention was aimed at motivating, instructing and facilitating GPs and older patients to increase patient involvement during consultation by use of a specially designed consultation leaflet.

A consultation leaflet to improve an older patient's involvement in general practice care: a randomized trial.

Objective: To evaluate the effects of a programme to enhance the involvement of older patients in their consultations in general practice.

Design: Cluster randomized trial, in which data was collected from different cohorts.

Setting And Participants: Twenty-five general practices in the south-east part of the Netherlands and their patients aged 70 years and over.

Elderly patients' and GPs' views on different methods for patient involvement: an international qualitative interview study.

Background: Elderly patients' interaction with the GP may be improved through patient involvement techniques, and there is a variety of such techniques which improve patients' involvement in their own care, although little is known about their acceptability.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to identify barriers and facilitators for using patient information leaflets and patient satisfaction questionnaires as methods for increasing elderly patients' involvement in general practice care by comparing their views with the GPs' views on these two types of methods.

Methods: In seven countries (Austria, Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia and Switzerland) 146 GPs and 284 patients aged 70 and over were interviewed about the use and the acceptability of these two methods.

GPs' views on involvement of older patients: an European qualitative study.

Involvement of older patients in general practice care is regarded as important, but is not widespread. To determine specific barriers to the involvement of older patients in general practice care and to identify variations between countries, we performed an international comparative study based on qualitative interviews with 233 general practitioners (GPs) in 11 countries. Most GPs thought that involving older patients had positive outcomes.