The British Society of Echocardiography (BSE) is pleased to announce the launch of a new poster resource aimed at the primary care sector.
The new primary care triaging poster, for situations relevant to primary care where an echocardiogram is likely to be of low clinical yield, is released hot on the heels of the secondary care triaging poster set.
The BSE recognises that very often the most useful information in primary care is to know the clinical conditions in which transthoracic echocardiography is not routinely indicated at the time of initial clinical contact. These conditions are grouped by symptom or clinical finding below for rapid reference by General Practitioners for use in primary care settings. This guidance is not intended to override clinical judgment in individual cases and has chiefly been created to support situations where clinical judgement favours avoiding further investigation. It is hoped that this document can also aid the general practitioner in challenging unnecessary echo requests from secondary care and be used by departments to educate GP colleagues in how to make best use of the echo department.
Dr Andrew Potter, GP Representative to the Society and GP at Whaddon Healthcare, Milton Keynes, said “This is a fantastic document that can really help GPs decided when an echo might not help in the management of their patients. Often GPs are faced with patient’s presenting with non-specific symptoms and can feel the only way forward is to order lots of investigations which can be concerning to patients and lengthen waiting times."
"This poster can really help support these complex clinical decisions and will be a welcome tool in primary care.”
The poster is available for download in both digital and print-ready formats.
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