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The following is a summary of “Exploring the general practitioners’ perception of the inter-professional care of rheumatoid arthritis patients (GEPRA—II): a qualitative interview study,” published in the January 2025 issue of Primary Care by Yailian et al.

Medication adherence among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is often suboptimal. Inter-professional collaboration is crucial for effective therapeutic management. 

Researchers conducted a retrospective study to analyze barriers and facilitators for general practitioners (GPs) in adopting collaborative support programs for RA. 

They conducted a qualitative semi-structured study with French GPs who referred patients with RA. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis framework with Nvivo®12 software. 

The results showed that 19 GPs were interviewed between August 2019 and February 2020, identifying 5 themes in the care of patients with RA. GPs were mainly involved in diagnosis and orientation, often requesting pain management and reformulation of information. They perceived patients as adherent but noted reasons for non-adherence. GPs found community-hospital interactions insufficient and expected more immediate communication. While most had no expectations for increased collaboration with community pharmacists (CPs), several were motivated to engage in patient support programs. Barriers included lack of time, training, and insufficient payment. 

Investigators concluded that a collaborative patient support program in RA should address the barriers and facilitators identified by GPs, who sought more information on therapeutic monitoring. 

Source: bmcprimcare.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12875-025-02713-4