Background: Considering shortages of general practitioners (GP) and strategies for improving the quality of health\ncare provision, many countries have implemented interprofessional care models with advanced practice nurses\n(APN). International evidence suggests that APN care results in high patient satisfaction. In Switzerland, the role is\nstill new, and the patient perspective has not yet been researched. Our aim was therefore to explore patientsâ??\nexperiences with the APN role in Swiss family practices.\nMethods: We conducted 22 semi-structured interviews in four different family practices with patients aged 18 to\n97 suffering from minor acute to multiple chronic diseases, and who had at least one consultation with an APN. All\ninterviews were audiotaped, transcribed verbatim, and analysed using qualitative content analysis.\nResults: The analysis resulted in five themes: Despite the unfamiliarity, all patients were willing to be consulted by\nan APN because it was recommended by their GP (1); after several encounters, most participants perceived\ndifferences between the APN and the GP consultation in terms of the length and style of the consultations as well\nas the complexity of their tasks (2); the interviewees emphasised coaching, guidance, care coordination, and GPassisting\ntasks as APN core competencies and attributed the characteristics empathetic, trustworthy, and competent\nto the APN role (3); most patients especially valued home visits and the holistic approach of the APNs, but they\nalso noticed that in certain cases GP supervision was required (4); and due to the close collaboration between the\nAPN and the GP, patients felt safe, well cared for and experienced improvements in physical and psychological\nwell-being as well as in daily activities (5).\nConclusion: Our results suggested that patients value the APNsâ?? competencies, despite their initial lack of role\nknowledge. Trust in the GP seemed to be the most important factor for patientsâ?? receptiveness toward the APN\nrole. Overall, patients perceived an added value due to the enlargement of the scope of practice offered by APNs.\nThe patient perspective might provide valuable insights for further APN role implementation in Swiss family\npractices.
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