ArticleThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2017
GPs' knowledge, use, and confidence in national physical activity and health guidelines and tools: a questionnaire-based survey of general practice in England.
Article in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 79 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The trial behind it
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Who cites it
79 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 152 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- Effectiveness of physical activity interventions delivered or prompted by health professionals in primary care settings: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2022Pooled it
- Influences on NHS Health Check behaviours: a systematic review.BMC public health · 2020Pooled it
- Trial
- From a research trial to routine practice: stakeholders' perceptions and experiences of referrals to the National Exercise Referral Scheme (NERS) in Wales.BMC health services research · 2021Trial
- Validation of the General Practice Physical Activity Questionnaire after severe COVID-19.ERJ open research · 2026Article
- Integration of exercise and sports medicine curriculum in China: a structured pilot course evaluation conducted among medical students.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Assessing Physicians' Knowledge, Attitudes, Intentions, Abilities, and Behaviour Toward Physical Activity and Exercise in Non-Communicable Diseases: Questionnaire Development Using an e-Delphi and Cross-Sectional Design.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- "Guidelines… yeah, they just haven't felt relevant to me." A qualitative exploration of chiropractors' perspectives on physical activity promotion.Journal of back and musculoskeletal rehabilitation · 2026Article
- Physical activity levels and self-perception among patients living with chronic conditions in France: A population-based cross-sectional study using the ComPaRe cohort.The European journal of general practice · 2025Article
- Implementation gap and influencing factors of exercise prescription for older adults: a large-scale survey of healthcare professionals in China.BMC geriatrics · 2025Article
- How GPs approach physical activity discussion in routine care: a qualitative study of video-recorded consultations.BJGP open · 2025Article
- The effectiveness and acceptability of digital health interventions as tools to promote physical activity in primary care: an update scoping review.Primary health care research & development · 2025Article
- Article
- Physical activity promotion practice within primary care: a cross-sectional survey of primary care health professionals in England.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Knowledge and Education on Physical Activity Health Benefits and Prescription Principles Among Greek Medical Students.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Knowledge, attitudes, practices, and perceived barriers of physicians in promoting physical activity in Urban Odisha, India.Journal of family medicine and primary care · 2025Article
- Article
- 'Forging healthy communities': a service evaluation of a 12-week community-based exercise, nutrition, behaviour change and peer-support programme.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Discussions about physical activity in general practice: analysis of video-recorded consultations.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2025Article
19 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPhysical activity (PA) brief advice in health care is effective at getting individuals active. It has been suggested that one in four people would be more active if advised by a GP or nurse, but as many as 72% of GPs do not discuss the benefits of physical activity with patients.
aimTo assess the knowledge, use, and confidence in national PA and Chief Medical Officer (CMO) health guidelines and tools among GPs in England. DESIGN AND
settingOnline questionnaire-based survey of self-selecting GPs in England that took place over a 10-day period in March 2016.
methodThe questionnaire consisted of six multiple-choice questions and was available on the Doctors.net.uk (DNUK) homepage. Quotas were used to ensure good regional representation.
resultsThe final analysis included 1013 responses. Only 20% of responders were broadly or very familiar with the national PA guidelines. In all, 70% of GPs were aware of the General Practice Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPPAQ), but 26% were not familiar with any PA assessment tools, and 55% reported that they had not undertaken any training with respect to encouraging PA.
conclusionThe majority of GPs in England (80%) are unfamiliar with the national PA guidelines. Awareness of the recommended tool for assessment, GPPAQ, is higher than use by GPs. This may be because it is used by other clinical staff, for example, as part of the NHS Health Check programme. Although brief advice in isolation by GPs on PA will only be a part of the behaviour change journey, it is an important prompt, especially if repeated as part of routine practice. This study highlights the need for significant improvement in knowledge, skills, and confidence to maximise the potential for PA advice in GP consultations.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.