{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,17]],"date-time":"2026-06-17T13:42:31Z","timestamp":1781703751283,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":12,"publisher":"BMJ","issue":"12","funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100002001","name":"Health Services and Delivery Research Programme","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100002001","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["bmj.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["BMJ Open"],"accepted":{"date-parts":[[2018,11,14]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2018,12]]},"abstract":"\n Objective<\/jats:title>\n To understand patients\u2019 views on a \u2018telephone-first\u2019 approach, in which all appointment requests in general practice are followed by a telephone call from the general practitioner (GP).<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Design<\/jats:title>\n Qualitative interviews with patients and carers.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Setting<\/jats:title>\n Twelve general practices in England.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Participants<\/jats:title>\n 43 patients, including 30 women, nine aged over 75 years, four parents of young children, five carers, five patients with hearing impairment and two whose first language was not English.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Results<\/jats:title>\n Patients expressed varied views, often strongly held, ranging from enthusiasm for to hostility towards the \u2018telephone-first\u2019 approach. The new system suited some patients, avoiding the need to come into the surgery but was problematic for others, for example, when it was difficult for someone working in an open plan office to take a call-back. A substantial proportion of negative comments were about the operation of the scheme itself rather than the principles behind it, for example, difficulty getting through on the phone or being unable to schedule when the GP would phone back. Some practices were able to operate the scheme in a way that met their patients\u2019 needs better than others and practices varied significantly in how they had implemented the approach.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Conclusions<\/jats:title>\n The \u2018telephone-first\u2019 approach appears to work well for some patients, but others find it much less acceptable. Some of the reported problems related to how the approach had been implemented rather than the \u2018telephone-first\u2019 approach in principle and suggests there may be potential for some of the challenges experienced by patients to be overcome.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjopen-2018-026197","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2018,12,31]],"date-time":"2018-12-31T10:45:18Z","timestamp":1546253118000},"page":"e026197","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/crossmarkpolicy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":28,"title":["Qualitative study of patient views on a \u2018telephone-first\u2019 approach in general practice in England: speaking to the GP by telephone before making face-to-face appointments"],"prefix":"10.1136","volume":"8","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8132-9507","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sarah L","family":"Ball","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Cambridge Centre for Health Services Research, RAND Europe, Westbrook Centre, Cambridge, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jennifer","family":"Newbould","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Cambridge Centre for Health Services Research, RAND Europe, Westbrook Centre, Cambridge, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jennie","family":"Corbett","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Cambridge Centre for Health Services Research, RAND Europe, Westbrook Centre, Cambridge, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Josephine","family":"Exley","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Cambridge Centre for Health Services Research, RAND Europe, Westbrook Centre, Cambridge, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Emma","family":"Pitchforth","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Cambridge Centre for Health Services Research, RAND Europe, Westbrook Centre, Cambridge, UK"},{"name":"University of Exeter Medical School, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Martin","family":"Roland","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Cambridge Centre for Health Services Research, Institute of Public Health, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"239","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2018,12,31]]},"reference":[{"key":"2025121601033268000_8.12.e026197.1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2323","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(16)00620-6","article-title":"Clinical workload in UK primary care: a retrospective analysis of 100 million consultations in England, 2007\u201314","volume":"387","author":"Hobbs","year":"2016","journal-title":"The Lancet"},{"key":"2025121601033268000_8.12.e026197.2","unstructured":"NHS England. 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