Lifestyle advice in general practice: rates recalled by patients.
British Medical Journal 1992; 305 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.305.6858.871 (Published 10 October 1992) Cite this as: British Medical Journal 1992;305:871- C. Silagy,
- J. Muir,
- A. Coulter,
- M. Thorogood,
- P. Yudkin,
- L. Roe
Abstract
OBJECTIVE--To document how often patients with varying cardiovascular risk levels reported receiving lifestyle advice from general practice. DESIGN--Cross sectional descriptive survey by postal questionnaire. SETTING--5 general practices in Bedfordshire. SUBJECTS--4941 people aged 35-64 years who had consulted a general practitioner at least once during the 12 months before completing the questionnaire and who subsequently attended for a health check as part of the OXCHECK trial. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Report of having received advice from a general practitioner or practice nurse about smoking, alcohol consumption, exercise, or diet during the 12 months before completing the questionnaire. Cardiovascular risk assessed by a nurse during structured health check. RESULTS--The overall reported rate of advice was 27% for smoking, 4.5% for exercise, 12% for diet, and 3% for alcohol consumption. Those with unhealthy behaviour profile or at increased cardiovascular risk received more advice--for example, 47% of smokers with a history of cardiovascular disease received advice on smoking. Among those at increased risk, men were more likely than women to receive advice about exercise (11% v 4%, p = 0.04) and alcohol consumption (10% v 4%, p = 0.007), while women received more advice about weight (17% v 23%, p < 0.001). The rate of receiving advice was unaffected by age, marital status, or social class. CONCLUSION--The low rate of lifestyle advice reported by patients implies that more preventive advice could be provided in primary care.