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Background General practice in Australia is expected to play a major role in responding to an influenza pandemic. This study investigated the experience of frontline general practice during the H1N1 influenza pandemic of 2009. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with general practices in the northern suburbs of Melbourne (Victoria) in August and September 2009. Purposive sampling chose practices with high volumes of patient presentations early in the pandemic. Interviews were content transcribed at the time of interview. Major themes were identified through discussion with general practice division personnel and academic general practitioners in the field. Results There was significant variability in the pandemic experiences of the 10 participating practices. Discussion Addressing issues identified in this study could increase the capacity of general practice to support the community and public health measures during a pandemic. Future planning for the role of general practice in pandemics should include pre-pandemic assessment of practice capacity, review of public health communication strategies and workforce protection, and improved integration of general practice and public health responses.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	influenza; communicable/infectious diseases; public health; health services; delivery of health care; general practice manpower
Research Division:	Biomedical and Clinical Sciences
Research Group:	Cardiovascular medicine and haematology
Research Field:	Respiratory diseases
Objective Division:	Health
Objective Group:	Clinical health
Objective Field:	Clinical health not elsewhere classified
UTAS Author:	Winzenberg, T (Professor Tania Winzenberg)
ID Code:	64431
Year Published:	2010
Web of Science® Times Cited:	9
Deposited By:	Menzies Institute for Medical Research
Deposited On:	2010-07-28
Last Modified:	2011-04-29
Downloads:	333 View Download Statistics