Determinants of antibiotic prescribing for upper respiratory tract infections in an emergency department with good primary care access: a qualitative analysis.

ABSTRACT: Upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) account for substantial attendances at emergency departments (EDs). There is a need to elucidate determinants of antibiotic prescribing in time-strapped EDs - popular choices for primary care despite highly accessible primary care clinics. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with purposively sampled physicians (n = 9) in an adult ED in Singapore. All interviews were analysed using thematic analysis and further interpreted using the Social Ecological Model to explain prescribing determinants. Themes included: (1) reliance on clinical knowledge and judgement, (2) patient-related factors, (3) patient-physician relationship factors, (4) perceived practice norms, (5) policies and treatment guidelines and (6) patient education and awarene

SUBMITTER: Chan YY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6518493 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature