Has the COVID-19 Pandemic Led to Changes in the Tasks of the Primary Care Workforce? An International Survey among General Practices in 38 Countries (PRICOV-19)

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a large and varying impact on primary care. This paper studies changes in the tasks of general practitioners (GPs) and associated staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data from the PRICOV-19 study of 5093 GPs in 38 countries were used. We constructed a scale for task changes and performed multilevel analyses. The scale was reliable at both GP and country level. Clustering of task changes at country level was considerable (25%). During the pandemic, staff members were more involved in giving information and recommendations to patients contacting the practice by phone, and they were more involved in triage. GPs took on additional responsibilities and were more involved in reaching out to patients. Problems due to staff absence, when dealt with internally, were related to more task changes. Task changes were larger in practices employing a wider range of professional groups. Whilst GPs were happy with the task changes in practices with more changes, they also felt the need for further training. A higher-than-average proportion of elderly people and people with a chronic condition in the practice were related to task changes. The number of infections in a country during the first wave of the pandemic was related to task changes. Other characteristics at country level were not associated with task changes. Future research on the sustainability of task changes after the pandemic is needed.

Health Service Management and Patient Safety in Primary Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Kosovo

“…According to our findings, since the COVID-19 pandemic, staff members of PC practices have been more involved and proactive in patient care, as well as in distributing work in the case that a staff member in practice is missing owing to COVID-19 infection/quarantine. This is in line with the findings of the Groenewegen et al study, indicating that PC practices also changed the tasks of healthcare personnel in response to the needs for care during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 38 ]. Many PRICOV study participants agreed that their responsibilities had increased and that GPs and GP trainees were more involved in proactively reaching out to patients who might delay seeking healthcare [ 38 ].…”

“…This is in line with the findings of the Groenewegen et al study, indicating that PC practices also changed the tasks of healthcare personnel in response to the needs for care during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 38 ]. Many PRICOV study participants agreed that their responsibilities had increased and that GPs and GP trainees were more involved in proactively reaching out to patients who might delay seeking healthcare [ 38 ]. However, pandemics are high-stakes situations, and PC workers should frequently manage difficult and unacknowledged burdens of responsibility.…”

The Impact of COVID-19 on Primary Care: A Scoping Review

“…There has been some major change in healthcare workers' decision-making in times of uncertainty in particular when allocating resources within this challenging clinical situation (29,30). This certainly has led to an impact on both the physical and mental health needs of healthcare workers, fears of transmitting the virus to family members, and lack of personal protection equipment, which has certainly led depleted workforce (31)(32)(33)(34)(35)(36).…”

“…Decision-making during a non-pandemic environment can be in itself challenging for most healthcare workers. However, with the supplement of a pandemic, it has certainly added a new dimension to how decision-making in times of uncertainty is managed and has since been quite difficult for some healthcare workers when allocating resources within this challenging clinical situation [29,30]. This extra burden has certainly played a role in both the physical and mental health needs of healthcare workers [31].…”

The Organization of Outreach Work for Vulnerable Patients in General Practice during COVID-19: Results from the Cross-Sectional PRICOV-19 Study in 38 Countries

“…Although the merits of outreach work are widely acknowledged [ 13 , 22 ], the implementation in practice is regarded as challenging [ 13 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 ]. For example, previous evidence demonstrated that several practice characteristics are decisive in setting up outreach work.…”