Journal of Travel Medicine
Volume 22, Issue 6, 2015, Pages 368-374

General Practitioners' Perception of Risk for Travelers Visiting Friends and Relatives (Article) (Open Access)

Heywood A.E.* , Forssman B.L. , Seale H. , MacIntyre C.R. , Zwar N.
  • a School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW Australia, Samuels Building, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
  • b Public Health Unit, Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health District, Sydney, NSW, Australia
  • c School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW Australia, Samuels Building, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
  • d School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW Australia, Samuels Building, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
  • e School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW Australia, Samuels Building, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia

Abstract

Background General practitioners (GPs) are an important source of pre-travel health advice for travelers; however, only a few studies have investigated primary healthcare provider-related barriers to the provision of pre-travel health advice, particularly to travelers visiting friends and relatives (VFR). We aimed to investigate Australian GPs' knowledge, attitudes, and practices with regard to VFR travelers. Methods A postal survey was sent to randomly sampled GPs in Sydney, Australia, in 2012. The questionnaire investigated GPs' perception of risk and barriers to the provision of advice to VFR travelers. Results Of 563 GPs, 431 (76.6%) spoke a language other than English (LOTE) with 361 (64.1%) consulting in a LOTE. Overall, 222 (39.4%) GPs considered VFR travelers to be at higher risk than holiday travelers, with GPs consulting in English only [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 1.65, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.11-2.44, p=0.01] and GPs considering long-term migrants as VFR travelers (aOR 1.86 95% CI 1.07-3.23, p=0.03) remaining significant on multivariate analysis. Conclusions Multilingual GPs are a valuable resource to reducing language and cultural barriers to healthcare. Targeted education of this subgroup of GPs may assist in promoting pre-travel health assessments for VFR travelers. Awareness of the need for opportunistic targeting of migrants for pre-travel consultation through routine identification of future travel is needed. © 2015 International Society of Travel Medicine.

Author Keywords

[No Keywords available]

Index Keywords

residency education perception Australia developing country human risk assessment friend middle aged Odds Ratio travel General Practitioners general practitioner language Cultural Competency medical practice cultural competence health personnel attitude Surveys and Questionnaires health care cost continuing education migrant family Humans consultation male female risk factor Multivariate Analysis professional knowledge questionnaire medical education Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice Article adult Friends Australian attitude to health health care delivery
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84945128663&doi=10.1111%2fjtm.12229&partnerID=40&md5=b8bde2c15a0a28f7388511796123dc3c
DOI: 10.1111/jtm.12229
ISSN: 11951982
Cited by: 9
Original Language: English