Telemedicine is achieving relevant clinical importance in rural areas in the management of patients. The Second opinion Unificata per Medici di Medicina generAle (SUMMA) Project was designed to evaluate the feasibility of a joint telemedicine service application across general practitioners and clinical specialists in Italy. The secondary objective of the study included the comparison of telemedicine with the routine general practitioners' approach and a cost-effectiveness evaluation. One hundred and thirty-five general practitioners from Lombardy, Molise, and Valle d'Aosta were enrolled. An ad hoc questionnaire was used to evaluate the feasibility, approval, efficacy, and satisfaction of telemedicine among the general practitioners. Ninety-three general practitioners used the telemedicine consultation (responders) for a total of 1,396 calls (1,264 for cardiology, 65 for dermatology, 32 for diabetology, 22 for rheumatology, and 13 for pneumology). In cardiology, telemedicine was used to address all problems without further action in 733 cases (61%). Ninety-eight percent of responders indicate satisfaction with telemedicine. The cost of telemedicine in our study was estimated to be 25.36 Euros/contact. In conclusion, the SUMMA Project demonstrated for the first time clinically the effectiveness of second-opinion consultation by general practitioners and therefore fulfilling the actual needs in areas usually managed by the National Health System.

BackgroundClinical governance is considered crucial in primary care. Since 2005, clinical pathways have been experimentally implemented at the Local Health Authority of Monza Brianza (ASLMB), Italy, to develop general practitioners’ (GPs) care of patients affected by some chronic diseases. The experimentation was aimed at introducing clinical governance in primary care, increasing GPs’ involvement in the care of their patients, and improving both patients’ and professionals’ satisfaction. In the period 2005-2006, 12% of the 763 employed GPs in the ASLMB were involved in the experiment, while this percentage increased to 15-20% in 2007-2008.Design and MethodsTwenty-four GPs were purposively sampled, randomly divided into two groups and asked to participate in focus groups (FGs) held in 2008, aimed at evaluating their perception of the experiment. The FGs were audio-recorded, dialogues were typed out and undergone to a thematic analysis, according to the Interpretative Phenomenological Approach.ResultsFour major themes emerged: i) clinical pathways can result in GPs working in a more efficient and effective fashion; ii) they can assure higher levels of both patient and professional satisfaction, since they sustain a caring approach and strengthen the GPs’ role; iii) nevertheless, clinical pathways increase the bureaucratic workload and problems can arise in relationships among GPs and the LHA; iv) the implementation of clinical pathways can be improved, especially by reducing bureaucracy and by assuring their continuity.ConclusionsManagerial aspects should be considered with care in order to experimentally introduce clinical pathways in general practice, and continuity of the experimentation should be guaranteed to improve GPs’ adherence and commitment.Acknowledgmentsthe Authors thank Dr. AP. Cantù and Dr D. Cereda who participated in the two focus groups as observers.

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