Why are we doing this study?

We are interested in improving communication between health practitioners and patients in Out-of-Hours consultations. We don’t know much about what happens during Out of Hours consultations because normally research has focussed on GP appointments that happen during usual working hours/days. The aim of this study is to explore how practitioners, patients and people who accompany patients discuss the management of common infections during Out-of-Hours consultations. If we can learn more about how prescribing and treatment decisions are done then we can help support patients and clinicians in practice by developing communication training that will provide guidance about how to discuss infections in ways that promote shared understandings between health care professionals and patients.

Which consultations are we seeking consent to record?

We are asking to record any consultation in which a patient accesses Out of Hours healthcare services to discuss the management of common infections.

Who can take part in the OPEN study

The study is open to anyone who visits Out of Hours care to discuss a common infection. If the patients are below 18, we may have to seek their assent and ask the parents to give consent on their behalf. If patients lack capacity to give informed consent, we will still ask them if they would like to participate, and their wishes will be respected. However, we would also ask someone who knows them well and has their best interests at heart to be their personal consultee to give us advice about whether they should participate.

What is involved in taking part?

Any patient who accesses Out of Hours primary care services can take part. This could be a consultation 1) over the phone 2) in a Primary Care Centre 3) in a home visit to the patient.

Participants will be asked for permission to record the consultation and obtain details related to the consultation from the practice computers. If you need some help making this decision, we can speak with you about finding someone you trust to help you. You will be asked to fill in a short questionnaire 10 days after the appointment. This could be done by you, or with help from someone else if you like. 

What are the benefits of taking part?

Many people find participating in research studies such as ours a positive experience. Your participation in the OPEN Project will help us to understand more about communication between clinicians and patients out-of-hours. We will use the results of this study to design new communication training for the treatment of patients with common medical problems. This will benefit patients across the UK in the future.