No long-term effect of the multifaceted intervention was found on the competence to diagnose skin cancer by GPs. The positive short-term effect of the 1-day dermatologic education programme did not persist over 12 months.
Health promotion, especially in the elderly, is crucial but in the opinion of the GPs we involved in our study, there is a gap between public health requirements and the reimbursement system. Integration of health promotion in medical education may be needed to increase knowledge as well as attitudes of GPs regarding this issue.
A one-day dermatologic education programme led to improvements in GPs' diagnostic competence in skin cancer, but there remained room for further improvement.
Background: Incidence of malignant skin lesions is rising in Switzerland. We wanted to assess the frequency of patients with suspicious skin lesions in daily practice. Furthermore, we asked for diagnostic certainty and the need of further education in skin cancer. Methods: Survey with 1212 GPs in the canton of Zurich, descriptive analysis, regression analysis. Results: Response rate 41,4%. 23,2% of the GPs saw daily/weekly patients with suspicious skin lesions, another 34,8% monthly. 79,0% reported need for further education in skin cancer. This need was lower in urban GPs and in GPs with higher diagnostic certainty. Conclusions: GPs saw relatively often patients with suspicious skin lesions. Despite high diagnostic certainty, there was a clear need for further education in skin cancer.
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