Irish general practitioner (GP) perspectives on impact of direct access radiology on patient care in the community: results from a mixed-methods study

Since winter 2020/21, general practitioners (GPs) in the Republic of Ireland (RoI) have been granted access to diagnostic imaging studies on a new publicly funded pathway, expediting access to services previously obtained via hospital-based doctors. Outline GP perspectives on imaging studies obtained via the new “GP Access to Community Diagnostics” initiative. A mixed-methods design was employed. Referrals over the first six months of 2019 and 2021 were collated by a private imaging provider, and a randomly selected subset of 2021 studies (maximum 30 referrals per GP) was returned to participating GPs to provide detail on the impact on each patient’s care. In-depth qualitative interviews were also conducted with participating GPs. Eleven GPs supplied detailed information on 81 studies organized through the new initiative. GPs reported that the initiative had led to a large proportion of cases being managed solely in general practice, with an 81