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Abstracto

Assessing the awareness of and attitude to NICE guidance within GP partnerships in one PCO in Wales: a qualitative study using focus group interviews

Sally Venn

Background Guidelines from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) have taken on a special prominence in the UK National Health Service (NHS). Many of these apply to primary care but there are few data available about general practitioners’ attitudes to and practical arrangements for implementing NICE guidance.Aim To explore GPs’ attitudes to practice policies and practical arrangements for implementing NICE guidance.Method Practice-based focus group interviews.Setting One primary care organisation in South Wales.Results A total of 36 doctors (62% of the sample) were interviewed, including at least one member from each of the 14 practices in the study. There were high levels of awareness of NICE guidance, but few procedures for dissemination and implementationwithin practices. The guidance publications were often felt to be of limited practical beneŽ t to professionals who were largely concerned with providing high-quality care to individuals. Conclusions These Ž ndings may represent signiŽ cant obstacles to the implementation of NICE guidance and thus limit their scope to enhance the clinical governance agenda in the UK NHS. The obstacles must be addressed in ways that enhancenot burden current clinical activity