Document Details Document Type : Article In Journal  Document Title : Impressions and Experiences of Non-neurologists in Neurology. آراء الأطباءالغير متخصصين وانطباعاتهم عن الأمراض العصبية   Document Language : English  Abstract : Background: Neurological disorders are common in Saudi Arabia and the demand for trained neurologists is strong. We aimed to study the impressions and experiences of practicing generalists in the neurology field and examine their referral practices. Method: Attendees of “neurology for non-neurologists” symposium were included. A structured 24-item questionnaire was designed to examine their demographics, training, practice, and referral patterns. Results: 108 participants registered for the symposium and 69 (64%) questionnaires were returned. Attendee’s ages were 23-60 years (mean 35), with 53% being males. There were 46% consultants and specialists, 33.5% trainees, 14.5% students, and 6% other health professionals. Most physicians (62%) were practicing in the field of general practice or internal medicine. Only 62% received a structured neurology rotation during training. Patients with neurological complaints constituted 29.5% of those seen in their practice and they referred 33.3% to neurology. Only 13.5% and 15.5% were highly confident in diagnosing and treating these patients respectively. Those who reported seeing many patients with neurological complaints (4 on the Likert scale) were 18.8 times more likely to feel highly confident in their diagnoses (95%CI 3-195, p=0.0002) and 23 times more likely to feel highly confident in their management (95%CI 3.6-236, p=0.0005). Many physicians (20.5%) had no direct access to a neurologist for referrals. Conclusions: Many generalists did not receive a structured neurology rotation during their training and were not highly confident in diagnosing and treating neurology patients. Given the limited number of neurologists, appropriate neurological training of generalists is recommended.  ISSN : 0930-2794  Journal Name : Neurosciences Journal  Volume : 4  Issue Number : 10  Publishing Year : 2005 AH 2005 AD  Article Type : Article  Added Date : Saturday, March 13, 2010  Researchers Researcher Name (Arabic) Researcher Name (English) Researcher Type Dr Grade Email محمد جان jan, Mohammed Researcher Doctorate   Files File Name Type Description  25909.doc doc   Back To Researches Page