Background: Most palliative care takes place in the home, provided by family doctors and community nurses.We are currently evaluating a national palliative care education programme funded by the English Department of Health. One objective is to identify family doctors perceptions of community nursing palliative care competence and knowledge.
Methods: We sent postal questionnaires to 1280 randomly selected family doctors, stratified by cancer network, across England.
Results: Our response was 60.1% (717/1193: 87 names were out-of-date). While most family doctors (69%) worked with any member of a community nursing team, 28% worked with one named nurse and they were more likely to be significantly satisfied with nurses recognising when to ask for advice and referral and for communication within the community team (P< 0.001). Family doctors who worked with one named nurse were also significantly more likely to be confident in nurses palliative care competence and knowledge (P< 0.001) except for using a syringe driver. More doctors in larger practices also expressed greater confidence.
Discussion: Identifying factors other than educational input is important in any evaluation. Family doctor confidence in nursing practice is enhanced when working with one named nurse. Larger practices may have greater continuity of contact with nursing teams.