Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35346050›Full record

ArticleBMC primary care2022

Information exchange networks for chronic diseases in primary care practices in Germany: a cross-sectional study.

Christine Arnold, Patrick Hennrich, Michel Wensing

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC primary care, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
0.5field-weighted citation impact, top 38% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Christine ArnoldDepartment of General Practice and Health Services Research, Heidelberg University Hospital, Im Neuenheimer Feld 130.3, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany. christine.arnold@med.uni-heidelberg.de.
Patrick HennrichDepartment of General Practice and Health Services Research, Heidelberg University Hospital, Im Neuenheimer Feld 130.3, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany.
Michel WensingDepartment of General Practice and Health Services Research, Heidelberg University Hospital, Im Neuenheimer Feld 130.3, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany.
University Hospital Heidelberg · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundCoordination of care requires information exchange between health workers. The structure of their information exchange networks may influence the quality and efficiency of healthcare delivery. The aim of this study was to explore and classify information exchange networks in primary care for patients with chronic diseases in Germany.

methodsA cross-sectional study was carried out between 2019 and 2021. As part of a larger project on coordination of care, this study focused on information exchange in practice teams regarding patients with type 2 diabetes (DM), coronary heart disease (CHD) and chronic heart failure (CHF). Social network analysis was applied to determine the number of connections, density and centralization for each of the health conditions for each of the practices. On the basis of the descriptive findings, we developed typologies of information exchange networks in primary care practices.

resultsWe included 153 health workers from 40 practices, of which 25 practices were included in the social network analysis. Four types of information exchange structures were identified for the three chronic diseases: highly connected networks with low hierarchy, medium connected networks with medium hierarchy, medium connected networks with low hierarchy and lowly connected networks. Highly connected networks with low hierarchy were identified most frequently (18 networks for DM, 17 for CHD and 14 for CHF). Of the three chronic conditions, information sharing about patients with DM involved the most team members. Information exchange outside the family practice took place mainly with nurses and pharmacists.

conclusionsThis study identified four types of information exchange structures, which provides a practical tool for management and improvement in primary care. Some practices had few information transfer connections and could hardly be considered a network.

trial registrationWe registered the study prospectively on 7 November 2019 at the German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS, www.drks.de ) under ID no. DRKS00019219.

Indexed as

Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2Chronic DiseaseCross-Sectional StudiesGermanyHumansPrimary Health CareChronic diseasesGeneral practiceInformation exchange networksSocial network analysis

Identifiers

PMID35346050
PMCPMC8958478
OpenAlexW4221078737

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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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.