Objective:
To determine to what extent general practitioners’ (GPs) prescribing behaviour is a result of repeat prescribing of medication
which has been initiated by specialists.
During a 4-week period, pharmacists identified GPs’ prescriptions for a large group of cardiovascular drugs. Next, questionnaires
were sent to the prescribing GPs to find out whether the prescriptions were in fact repeat prescriptions. If they were, the
GPs were asked whether or not they had originally been prescribed by a specialist.
Six pharmacies in the northeastern part of the Netherlands.
Fourty-four GPs, 39 of whom responded.
Of 1648 questionnaires, 1342 (81%) were returned. Of drugs for cardiovascular therapy that the GPs prescribed, 66% had originally
been prescribed by specialists.
For many cardiovascular drugs, GPs’ prescriptions predominantly originated from specialists’ prescribing. For more reliable
attribution of prescription data or prescribing behaviour to either specialists or to GPs, similar studies should be made
for other drug groups. Since the extent of repeat prescribing is high, qualitative studies should be made of the appropriateness
of chronic medication, initiated by specialists and continued in repeat prescribing by GPs.
Key words Drug utilization – Prescribing behaviour; repeat prescribing – general practitioners
Received: 13 June 1995/Accepted in revised form: 4 January 1995