Clinician perception of a novel cardiovascular lifestyle prescription form in the primary and secondary care setting in Wales, UK

Abstract

Issues addressed To establish the views of clinicians on the feasibility and effectiveness of using a novel lifestyle prescription form (LRx) which requires co‐signing by clinician and patient and is uniquely based on the design of the standard drug prescription form, in the primary and secondary health care settings. Methods Thirty‐six participants were issued with a “prescription” pad, of 20 LRx scripts, for 1 month and requested to issue an LRx prescription to patients they deemed suitable during their consultation, recording their reason for use of the LRx. Each clinician was then asked to complete a comprehensive feedback questionnaire. Results Feedback of the LRx was overwhelmingly positive. The script was viewed as a more effective way to convey and support cardiovascular lifestyle advice, than usual care. Forty per cent (196 of 480) of the LRx scripts that were provided to primary and secondary care clinicians during the study period were issued. In most consultations, the LRx script was issued to reaffirm dietary advice. Nurses and health care assistants were more likely than doctors to use the LRx in response to a request for lifestyle advice from a patient. Conclusions The LRx may be a useful addition to the clinician's communication toolkit to stimulate lifestyle behaviour changes in their patients. The main barrier to use in the study was lack of consultation time. So what? Issuing the LRx is a method of solidifying lifestyle advice that clinicians could utilise, providing them with another tool in their behaviour change arsenal, particularly with familiarity with the tool.

American College of Lifestyle Medicine Expert Consensus Statement: Lifestyle Medicine for Optimal Outcomes in Primary Care

“…Primary care clinicians and patients are receptive towards addressing behaviors associated with health such as nutrition, physical activity, and unhealthy substance use, and patients benefit from prescriptive support; however, clinicians often lack the specific knowledge or time to provide this care. 35 Advancing LM within primary care may require innovative thinking about how and by whom health care is delivered, clinician competencies, patient engagement, the time and structure of patient visits, and models for reimbursement. 36,37…”