Evaluating Electronic Therapeutic Protocols (ETPS) for Diabetes and Heart Failure in Greece: Results from a Quantitative Survey Amongst Practicing Physicians

OBJECTIVES: Electronic therapeutic protocols (eTPs) for diabetes and heart failure were introduced in Greece, to inform and guide prescribing practices. Yet, user satisfaction with them has not been evaluated to date.

METHODS: A quantitative survey to evaluate value, user-friendliness, data safety, and interconnectivity with other State platforms of eTPs in diabetes and heart failure amongst general practitioners (GPs) and cardiologists in Greece. Participants received an email invitation containing a link to an online survey from the Athens Medical Society. A 5-point Likert scale (1=not at all, 5= very much) was used to evaluate eTPs’ parameters. All responses were anonymous.

RESULTS: 82 physicians, of which 77% were employed in the public sector, participated in the survey. 67% were 40-59 years old and 46% had up to 9 years of work experience. Respondents reported an average daily use of technology of 4-8 hours, to manage patient records, prescribe pharmaceuticals, read new scientific developments or for personal purposes. 76% had no administrative support at their practice. Respondents considered eTPs very useful in selecting the appropriate treatment and supporting repeat electronic prescriptions for normalized patients. They considered eTPs’ web application to be easily accessible, safe, relatively-up to date and somehow simple to use. Respondents reported improvements in interconnectivity with other State platforms as the most pressing change required (4.04/5 for diabetes and 4.0/5.0 for heart failure, where 1= less important priority and 5= most important priority), followed by improvements in content (e.g., frequent updates to reflect clinical guidelines and information on drug-to-drug interactions, 3.98/5.0 for diabetes and 4.03/5.0 for heart failure).

CONCLUSIONS: Physicians in Greece consider eTPs useful in supporting therapeutic decision making and facilitating repeat prescriptions. eTPs should become more interconnected to other applications for patient management (such as e-diagnosis and e-prescription) and remain up-to-date and consistently enriched with latest scientific evidence.