An interventional strategy that focused on doctor-patient communication and patient empowerment is an effective concept to reduce antibiotic prescriptions in primary care.

Background: The reduction in the number of unnecessary prescriptions of antibiotics has become one of the most important objectives for primary health care. German GPs report that they are under "pressure to prescribe" antibiotics particularly in consultations with Turkish immigrants. And so a qualitative approach was used to learn more about the socio-medical context of Turkish patients in regard to acute coughs. A German leaflet designed to improve the doctor-patient communication has been positively tested and then adapted for Turkish patients.

Whether a fluoroquinolone is prescribed by a GP seems to be determined not only by the patient's characteristics but also by the GP's vocational training and overall antibiotic prescribing rate. As the prescription of fluoroquinolones for the treatment of acute coughing can rarely be justified, such prescriptions may serve as a quality indicator for antibiotic prescribing in primary care.