Just Accepted
This article has been peer reviewed and accepted for publication. It is in production and has not been edited, so may differ from the final published form.
Developing a preconception medical record audit tool for general practice: a multi-method study
Abstract
Background and objective: Preconception health risk factors documented in general practice electronic medical records (EMRs) help general practitioners (GPs) understand the proportion and type of risks among women attending their practice. We aimed to collaborate with GPs to develop an audit tool for collecting preconception health data from structured EMR fields. Methods: This was a three-phase multimethod study. In Phase one, we developed a preliminary audit tool informed by the literature. In Phase two, we collaborated with GPs for feedback. In Phase three, we finalised the audit tool. Results: The preliminary audit tool comprised 25 preconception health risk factors, of which three were removed following GP feedback (second-hand smoke, social history, history of sexually transmitted infections). The final audit tool comprised 22 preconception health risk factors. Conclusion: This audit tool may assist researchers in understanding the proportion of patients visiting general practice with preconception health risk factors, thereby facilitating the future development of a screening process that may be used to identify and provide PCC to women who may most benefit from it.
PY24132 Accepted 06 March 2025
© La Trobe University 2025
