Understaffing and overprescribing: a register study on the role of locum physicians in antibiotic prescribing patterns in primary care in Northern Sweden.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Understaffing and dependence on temporary physicians known as locums are common in primary healthcare in Sweden. In this study, we investigate the impact of locum staffing on the quality of antibiotic prescribing for respiratory tract infections. We used two neighbouring cities in northern Sweden with large differences in staffing conditions: Skellefteå, with a 10-fold higher reliance on locum physicians compared to Umeå, which has low locum staffing.

Methods

We used data extracted from patient records for all visits, from the four largest healthcare centres in each of the cities Umeå and Skellefteå, for respiratory tract infections, including the ICD-10 diagnosis code and whether antibiotic treatment was prescribed or not. Data on the contracted hours of locum

SUBMITTER: Dagberg B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12918301 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature