Ian Watts - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Ian Watts
The Australian journal of advanced nursing : a quarterly publication of the Royal Australian Nursing Federation
To describe the educational needs of nurses working in general medical practice in Australia. Sur... more To describe the educational needs of nurses working in general medical practice in Australia. Survey research combining qualitative and quantitative data collected via telephone interview. 222 enrolled (RN Division 2 in Victoria) and registered nurses (RN Division 1 in Victoria) working in general practice in rural and urban areas of Australia. Nurses identified a number of educational areas of high importance including communication skills (94.1%); infection control (93.7%); confidentiality and national privacy legislation (93.7%); legal and ethical issues (91.9%); first aid and CPR (91.4%); wound (91.0%); care cold chain monitoring (90.0%); sterilisation (90.0%); and triage (90%). Barriers to education were identified including lack of time due to work (21.9%); costs of courses (17.3%); distance to education (13.9%); and lack of time due to family commitments (13.1%). More rural/remote nurses identified distance as a barrier (20.5%) than urban nurses (3.6%). cussion: The education...
Primary Health Care Research & Development, 2013
Aim: This paper explores cultural and professional dynamics of HIV general practice nursing in Au... more Aim: This paper explores cultural and professional dynamics of HIV general practice nursing in Australia. It highlights specific contributions that HIV general practice nurses make to HIV medicine and considers how nurses' clinical practice has been shaped by past experiences of the AIDS crisis and subsequent developments in HIV medicine. Background: In international contexts, nurses in HIV medicine commonly work as part of shared-care teams. In recent years, HIV general practice nursing has become a prioritised area for primary health care in Australia. Methods: Data for this analysis were drawn from 45 in-depth, semi-structured interviews conducted with nurses and general practitioners (GPs) who provide HIV care in general practice, and key informants who work in policy, advocacy or education and training of the HIV general practice workforce. Findings: Viewed through a socio-ecological framework of social capital, descriptive content analysis highlights a unique and strong HIV health professional identity, which emerged out of the adverse conditions experienced by nurses, GPs and allied health professionals during the 1980s AIDS crisis. Participants reported that today, HIV general practice nursing includes information provision, HIV treatment side-effect management, teaching patients methods to increase adherence to HIV treatments and capacity building with allied health professionals. Participants reported that HIV general practice nurses can reduce the clinical burden on GPs, ameliorate patients' exposure to HIV health care-related stigma and discrimination and facilitate the emergence of a comprehensive and personalised model of shared primary health care based on trust and rapport, which is desired by people with HIV. This study's findings support the future expansion of the role of HIV general practice nurses in Australia and internationally. General practice nursing will become increasingly
Australian Family Physician, 2007
Financing and the quality framework BACKGROUND Using a quality framework can assist in the design... more Financing and the quality framework BACKGROUND Using a quality framework can assist in the design of payment arrangements to ensure that the optimal effects of health funding are achieved. OBJECTIVE This article examines the finance domain of The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Quality Framework for Australian General Practice. DISCUSSION The quality of the care general practitioners and their teams provide is affected by the way the GPs and team members are paid, both within the practice and through programs such as the Medicare Benefits Schedule. These payment arrangements do not always promote high quality and can have unintended negative consequences.
Australian family physician, 2008
Dr Bev Young has just finished packing up her office. This is her last day in her Preston practic... more Dr Bev Young has just finished packing up her office. This is her last day in her Preston practice of 19 years. Bev enjoys the autonomy of being a solo general practitioner, but lately she finds managing the practice increasingly stressful. Teaming up with a fellow GP seemed a good alternative.
Australasian Medical Journal, 2010
The physical layout of general practices has generally been overlooked in research on safety in t... more The physical layout of general practices has generally been overlooked in research on safety in the health system. This article provides an overview of the evidence that is available on physical design, and the implications of this research for general practice.
Australian family physician
Using a quality framework can assist in the design of payment arrangements to ensure that the opt... more Using a quality framework can assist in the design of payment arrangements to ensure that the optimal effects of health funding are achieved. This article examines the finance domain of The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Quality Framework for Australian General Practice. The quality of the care general practitioners and their teams provide is affected by the way the GPs and team members are paid, both within the practice and through programs such as the Medicare Benefits Schedule. These payment arrangements do not always promote high quality and can have unintended negative consequences.
Australian family physician, 2017
BACKGROUND Physiotherapy plays an important role in the health of many Australians. The aims of t... more BACKGROUND Physiotherapy plays an important role in the health of many Australians. The aims of this study were to assess changes in the rate of general practitioner (GP) referral to physiotherapists in Australia from 1998 to 2014, and to determine patient characteristics associated with increased likelihood of such referral. METHODS Secondary analysis was undertaken of data from the Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health program using weighted encounter data years 1998-99 to 2014-15 inclusive. RESULTS The rate of GP referral to physiotherapists remained steady until 2010, when referrals increased. Patients were more likely to be referred to physiotherapy if they had a Department of Veterans' Affairs card; did not have a Health Care Card; were female aged 45-64 years; or male aged 25-44 years. Musculoskeletal problems accounted for 80% of referrals, but only 6.8% of all musculoskeletal problems managed were referred. DISCUSSION Allied health Medicare Benefits Schedule item ...
OBJECTIVE To describe the workforce characteristics and current responsibilities of nurses workin... more OBJECTIVE To describe the workforce characteristics and current responsibilities of nurses working in Australian general practice settings. DESIGN Survey research combining qualitative and quantitative data collected through telephone interview. SUBJECTS 222 enrolled (RN Division 2 in Victoria) and registered nurses (RN Division 1 in Victoria) working in general practice in rural and urban areas of Australia. RESULTS General practice nurses in Australia are likely to be RNs (84.7%) who work on a part-time basis (75.3%) in a medium to large practice (93.7%). Often the nurse has worked less than five full time equivalent years (52.3%) in a general practice environment and is likely to work in a practice where at least one other nurse works (64.4%). The nurse is likely to have some post-basic formal education (65.9%), and to have participated in professional development in the past two years (94.9%). The nurse performs a diverse range of activities within the general practice. No subst...
Collegian, 2006
The quality of care delivered by nurses working in Australian general practices rests on a strong... more The quality of care delivered by nurses working in Australian general practices rests on a strong foundation of nursing educatlon and training. A national study of nurses working in general practice was conducted using qualitative and quantitative research techniques to explore their role and educational needs. Results from this research suggest that education for general practice nurses is seen by nurses and General Practitioners to be largely non-formal in nature and is seen by GPs and nurses to be tailored towards general practice nursing needs. Such education is often available locally through general practice support organisations; is strongly focused on National Health Priority Areas and clinical care; and is more appropriate for registered rather than enrolled nurses. The educational opportunities currently available to support nursing in general practice are largely ad hoc and vary in relation to quality, appropriateness and accessibility. Nurses working in general practices in Australia need a system of ongoing training and education to support their responsibilities and foster the development of the position as a viable career option for nurses.
Medical journal of Australia, 2006
MEDICAL JOURNAL …, 2006
Roles within general practice teams should support the GPpatient relationship All roles within t... more Roles within general practice teams should support the GPpatient relationship All roles within the general practice team need to respect and support the GPpatient relationship. Many patients want to be able to identify the GP with whom they have an ongoing and trusted ...
Medical Journal of Australia, 2008
Equity must be the basis of primary health care if reform is to deliver the outcomes we all want.
Journal of physiotherapy, 2018
Which health problems do medical general practitioners (GPs) most commonly refer to physiotherapi... more Which health problems do medical general practitioners (GPs) most commonly refer to physiotherapists? What is the likelihood of GPs referring patients for specific health problems? Secondary analysis of data from the Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH) study, which is a national observational study of Australian general practice clinical activity. People at GP encounters between April 2010 and March 2015. The outcomes were the proportion of all (new) health problems that were referred to a physiotherapist, the distribution of health problems referred to physiotherapists, and the likelihood of referral of (all and new) specific health problems to physiotherapists. There were 6904 referrals to a physiotherapist from 775893 GP encounters, which equated to 0.89% (95% CI 0.86 to 0.92). Among the 286858 new health problems, 2987 were referred to a physiotherapist (1.04%, 95% CI 0.99 to 1.09). The health problems that were most commonly referred were back complaints (18.6%)...
Australian family physician, 2017
Physiotherapy plays an important role in the health of many Australians. The aims of this study w... more Physiotherapy plays an important role in the health of many Australians. The aims of this study were to assess changes in the rate of general practitioner (GP) referral to physiotherapists in Australia from 1998 to 2014, and to determine patient characteristics associated with increased likelihood of such referral. Secondary analysis was undertaken of data from the Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health program using weighted encounter data years 1998-99 to 2014-15 inclusive. The rate of GP referral to physiotherapists remained steady until 2010, when referrals increased. Patients were more likely to be referred to physiotherapy if they had a Department of Veterans' Affairs card; did not have a Health Care Card; were female aged 45-64 years; or male aged 25-44 years. Musculoskeletal problems accounted for 80% of referrals, but only 6.8% of all musculoskeletal problems managed were referred. Allied health Medicare Benefits Schedule item numbers have increased referrals to ph...
The Australian journal of advanced nursing : a quarterly publication of the Royal Australian Nursing Federation
To describe the workforce characteristics and current responsibilities of nurses working in Austr... more To describe the workforce characteristics and current responsibilities of nurses working in Australian general practice settings. Survey research combining qualitative and quantitative data collected through telephone interview. 222 enrolled (RN Division 2 in Victoria) and registered nurses (RN Division 1 in Victoria) working in general practice in rural and urban areas of Australia. General practice nurses in Australia are likely to be RNs (84.7%) who work on a part-time basis (75.3%) in a medium to large practice (93.7%). Often the nurse has worked less than five full time equivalent years (52.3%) in a general practice environment and is likely to work in a practice where at least one other nurse works (64.4%). The nurse is likely to have some post-basic formal education (65.9%), and to have participated in professional development in the past two years (94.9%). The nurse performs a diverse range of activities within the general practice. No substantial differences were found in t...
This chapter is also in two parts. The first part deals with the context of infrastructure, gover... more This chapter is also in two parts. The first part deals with the context of infrastructure, governance and leadership. This section provides an interesting discussion of the theoretical underpinnings of infrastructure development in health. It then goes on to ...
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The Australian journal of advanced nursing : a quarterly publication of the Royal Australian Nursing Federation
To describe the educational needs of nurses working in general medical practice in Australia. Sur... more To describe the educational needs of nurses working in general medical practice in Australia. Survey research combining qualitative and quantitative data collected via telephone interview. 222 enrolled (RN Division 2 in Victoria) and registered nurses (RN Division 1 in Victoria) working in general practice in rural and urban areas of Australia. Nurses identified a number of educational areas of high importance including communication skills (94.1%); infection control (93.7%); confidentiality and national privacy legislation (93.7%); legal and ethical issues (91.9%); first aid and CPR (91.4%); wound (91.0%); care cold chain monitoring (90.0%); sterilisation (90.0%); and triage (90%). Barriers to education were identified including lack of time due to work (21.9%); costs of courses (17.3%); distance to education (13.9%); and lack of time due to family commitments (13.1%). More rural/remote nurses identified distance as a barrier (20.5%) than urban nurses (3.6%). cussion: The education...
Primary Health Care Research & Development, 2013
Aim: This paper explores cultural and professional dynamics of HIV general practice nursing in Au... more Aim: This paper explores cultural and professional dynamics of HIV general practice nursing in Australia. It highlights specific contributions that HIV general practice nurses make to HIV medicine and considers how nurses' clinical practice has been shaped by past experiences of the AIDS crisis and subsequent developments in HIV medicine. Background: In international contexts, nurses in HIV medicine commonly work as part of shared-care teams. In recent years, HIV general practice nursing has become a prioritised area for primary health care in Australia. Methods: Data for this analysis were drawn from 45 in-depth, semi-structured interviews conducted with nurses and general practitioners (GPs) who provide HIV care in general practice, and key informants who work in policy, advocacy or education and training of the HIV general practice workforce. Findings: Viewed through a socio-ecological framework of social capital, descriptive content analysis highlights a unique and strong HIV health professional identity, which emerged out of the adverse conditions experienced by nurses, GPs and allied health professionals during the 1980s AIDS crisis. Participants reported that today, HIV general practice nursing includes information provision, HIV treatment side-effect management, teaching patients methods to increase adherence to HIV treatments and capacity building with allied health professionals. Participants reported that HIV general practice nurses can reduce the clinical burden on GPs, ameliorate patients' exposure to HIV health care-related stigma and discrimination and facilitate the emergence of a comprehensive and personalised model of shared primary health care based on trust and rapport, which is desired by people with HIV. This study's findings support the future expansion of the role of HIV general practice nurses in Australia and internationally. General practice nursing will become increasingly
Australian Family Physician, 2007
Financing and the quality framework BACKGROUND Using a quality framework can assist in the design... more Financing and the quality framework BACKGROUND Using a quality framework can assist in the design of payment arrangements to ensure that the optimal effects of health funding are achieved. OBJECTIVE This article examines the finance domain of The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Quality Framework for Australian General Practice. DISCUSSION The quality of the care general practitioners and their teams provide is affected by the way the GPs and team members are paid, both within the practice and through programs such as the Medicare Benefits Schedule. These payment arrangements do not always promote high quality and can have unintended negative consequences.
Australian family physician, 2008
Dr Bev Young has just finished packing up her office. This is her last day in her Preston practic... more Dr Bev Young has just finished packing up her office. This is her last day in her Preston practice of 19 years. Bev enjoys the autonomy of being a solo general practitioner, but lately she finds managing the practice increasingly stressful. Teaming up with a fellow GP seemed a good alternative.
Australasian Medical Journal, 2010
The physical layout of general practices has generally been overlooked in research on safety in t... more The physical layout of general practices has generally been overlooked in research on safety in the health system. This article provides an overview of the evidence that is available on physical design, and the implications of this research for general practice.
Australian family physician
Using a quality framework can assist in the design of payment arrangements to ensure that the opt... more Using a quality framework can assist in the design of payment arrangements to ensure that the optimal effects of health funding are achieved. This article examines the finance domain of The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Quality Framework for Australian General Practice. The quality of the care general practitioners and their teams provide is affected by the way the GPs and team members are paid, both within the practice and through programs such as the Medicare Benefits Schedule. These payment arrangements do not always promote high quality and can have unintended negative consequences.
Australian family physician, 2017
BACKGROUND Physiotherapy plays an important role in the health of many Australians. The aims of t... more BACKGROUND Physiotherapy plays an important role in the health of many Australians. The aims of this study were to assess changes in the rate of general practitioner (GP) referral to physiotherapists in Australia from 1998 to 2014, and to determine patient characteristics associated with increased likelihood of such referral. METHODS Secondary analysis was undertaken of data from the Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health program using weighted encounter data years 1998-99 to 2014-15 inclusive. RESULTS The rate of GP referral to physiotherapists remained steady until 2010, when referrals increased. Patients were more likely to be referred to physiotherapy if they had a Department of Veterans' Affairs card; did not have a Health Care Card; were female aged 45-64 years; or male aged 25-44 years. Musculoskeletal problems accounted for 80% of referrals, but only 6.8% of all musculoskeletal problems managed were referred. DISCUSSION Allied health Medicare Benefits Schedule item ...
OBJECTIVE To describe the workforce characteristics and current responsibilities of nurses workin... more OBJECTIVE To describe the workforce characteristics and current responsibilities of nurses working in Australian general practice settings. DESIGN Survey research combining qualitative and quantitative data collected through telephone interview. SUBJECTS 222 enrolled (RN Division 2 in Victoria) and registered nurses (RN Division 1 in Victoria) working in general practice in rural and urban areas of Australia. RESULTS General practice nurses in Australia are likely to be RNs (84.7%) who work on a part-time basis (75.3%) in a medium to large practice (93.7%). Often the nurse has worked less than five full time equivalent years (52.3%) in a general practice environment and is likely to work in a practice where at least one other nurse works (64.4%). The nurse is likely to have some post-basic formal education (65.9%), and to have participated in professional development in the past two years (94.9%). The nurse performs a diverse range of activities within the general practice. No subst...
Collegian, 2006
The quality of care delivered by nurses working in Australian general practices rests on a strong... more The quality of care delivered by nurses working in Australian general practices rests on a strong foundation of nursing educatlon and training. A national study of nurses working in general practice was conducted using qualitative and quantitative research techniques to explore their role and educational needs. Results from this research suggest that education for general practice nurses is seen by nurses and General Practitioners to be largely non-formal in nature and is seen by GPs and nurses to be tailored towards general practice nursing needs. Such education is often available locally through general practice support organisations; is strongly focused on National Health Priority Areas and clinical care; and is more appropriate for registered rather than enrolled nurses. The educational opportunities currently available to support nursing in general practice are largely ad hoc and vary in relation to quality, appropriateness and accessibility. Nurses working in general practices in Australia need a system of ongoing training and education to support their responsibilities and foster the development of the position as a viable career option for nurses.
Medical journal of Australia, 2006
MEDICAL JOURNAL …, 2006
Roles within general practice teams should support the GPpatient relationship All roles within t... more Roles within general practice teams should support the GPpatient relationship All roles within the general practice team need to respect and support the GPpatient relationship. Many patients want to be able to identify the GP with whom they have an ongoing and trusted ...
Medical Journal of Australia, 2008
Equity must be the basis of primary health care if reform is to deliver the outcomes we all want.
Journal of physiotherapy, 2018
Which health problems do medical general practitioners (GPs) most commonly refer to physiotherapi... more Which health problems do medical general practitioners (GPs) most commonly refer to physiotherapists? What is the likelihood of GPs referring patients for specific health problems? Secondary analysis of data from the Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health (BEACH) study, which is a national observational study of Australian general practice clinical activity. People at GP encounters between April 2010 and March 2015. The outcomes were the proportion of all (new) health problems that were referred to a physiotherapist, the distribution of health problems referred to physiotherapists, and the likelihood of referral of (all and new) specific health problems to physiotherapists. There were 6904 referrals to a physiotherapist from 775893 GP encounters, which equated to 0.89% (95% CI 0.86 to 0.92). Among the 286858 new health problems, 2987 were referred to a physiotherapist (1.04%, 95% CI 0.99 to 1.09). The health problems that were most commonly referred were back complaints (18.6%)...
Australian family physician, 2017
Physiotherapy plays an important role in the health of many Australians. The aims of this study w... more Physiotherapy plays an important role in the health of many Australians. The aims of this study were to assess changes in the rate of general practitioner (GP) referral to physiotherapists in Australia from 1998 to 2014, and to determine patient characteristics associated with increased likelihood of such referral. Secondary analysis was undertaken of data from the Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health program using weighted encounter data years 1998-99 to 2014-15 inclusive. The rate of GP referral to physiotherapists remained steady until 2010, when referrals increased. Patients were more likely to be referred to physiotherapy if they had a Department of Veterans' Affairs card; did not have a Health Care Card; were female aged 45-64 years; or male aged 25-44 years. Musculoskeletal problems accounted for 80% of referrals, but only 6.8% of all musculoskeletal problems managed were referred. Allied health Medicare Benefits Schedule item numbers have increased referrals to ph...
The Australian journal of advanced nursing : a quarterly publication of the Royal Australian Nursing Federation
To describe the workforce characteristics and current responsibilities of nurses working in Austr... more To describe the workforce characteristics and current responsibilities of nurses working in Australian general practice settings. Survey research combining qualitative and quantitative data collected through telephone interview. 222 enrolled (RN Division 2 in Victoria) and registered nurses (RN Division 1 in Victoria) working in general practice in rural and urban areas of Australia. General practice nurses in Australia are likely to be RNs (84.7%) who work on a part-time basis (75.3%) in a medium to large practice (93.7%). Often the nurse has worked less than five full time equivalent years (52.3%) in a general practice environment and is likely to work in a practice where at least one other nurse works (64.4%). The nurse is likely to have some post-basic formal education (65.9%), and to have participated in professional development in the past two years (94.9%). The nurse performs a diverse range of activities within the general practice. No substantial differences were found in t...
This chapter is also in two parts. The first part deals with the context of infrastructure, gover... more This chapter is also in two parts. The first part deals with the context of infrastructure, governance and leadership. This section provides an interesting discussion of the theoretical underpinnings of infrastructure development in health. It then goes on to ...
Skip to main content: ...