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General practitioners' experiences and understandings of diagnosing dementia: factors impacting on early diagnosis
Hansen EC, Hughes C, Routley G, Robinson AL.. Social science & medicine (1982), 2008-10-20
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
This article reports findings from three linked qualitative research projects that explored how Australian general practitioners (GPs) spoke about their experiences in diagnosing dementia and their views on early diagnosis and barriers towards early diagnosis. The authors conducted this research with the aim of elucidating the GP perspective and using this to better understand the process of diagnosing dementia and delays in diagnosing dementia. Twenty-four GPs based in Australia participated in the study (eleven females and thirteen males). Six of these GPs worked in rural practices, eight in a large town and the remainder in urban practices in a capital city. The major themes in GPs' accounts of the diagnosis of dementia could be grouped under the headings of 'recognizing dementia', 'holistic viewpoint', 'family members and patients' and 'medication'. Key findings are that dementia is a complex condition that takes time to diagnose. Diagnosis may involve conflict between GPs, family members/carers and the person with dementia (PWD). GPs did not consider that diagnosing dementia early was particularly important and may in fact be harmful to some patients. They are skeptical about the advantages of dementia medications. GPs assess the need for a formal diagnosis of dementia within the broader context of their older patients' lives. They are more likely to pursue a formal diagnosis in situations where they see it leading to benefits for their patient such as accessing dementia specific services. Increasing the availability of support services for PWD and educating GPs about the benefits of a formal diagnosis of dementia for stakeholders other than PWD, for example family members and carers may increase the likelihood that they will diagnose dementia early.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Hansen, E. C., Hughes, C., Routley, G., & Robinson, A. L. (2008). General practitioners' experiences and understandings of diagnosing dementia: factors impacting on early diagnosis. Social science & medicine (1982). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.09.020
Vancouver
Hansen EC, Hughes C, Routley G, Robinson AL. General practitioners' experiences and understandings of diagnosing dementia: factors impacting on early diagnosis. Social science & medicine (1982). 2008. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.09.020. PMID: 18945531.
BibTeX
@article{hansen2008-18945531,
author = {Hansen, E. C. and Hughes, C. and Routley, G. and Robinson, A. L.},
title = {{General practitioners' experiences and understandings of diagnosing dementia: factors impacting on early diagnosis}},
journal = {Social science \& medicine (1982)},
year = {2008},
doi = {10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.09.020},
pmid = {18945531},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.09.020}
}
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- GPs did not consider that diagnosing dementia early was particularly important and may in fact be harmful to some patients.
- They are skeptical about the advantages of dementia medications.
- GPs assess the need for a formal diagnosis of dementia within the broader context of their older patients' lives.
- They are more likely to pursue a formal diagnosis in situations where they see it leading to benefits for their patient such as accessing dementia specific services.
- Increasing the availability of support services for PWD and educating GPs about the benefits of a formal diagnosis of dementia for stakeholders other than PWD, for example family members and carers may increase the likelihood that they will diagnose dementia early.
Why it matters
Australian general practitioners did not consider early dementia diagnosis particularly important and thought it might harm some patients, and they were skeptical about the advantages of dementia medications. This suggests that improving early diagnosis and treatment may require addressing GP perspectives and the practical context of their older patients' lives.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 38/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Social science & medicine (1982)) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Social Science & Medicine: journal h-index 391 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2008 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 124 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 6.2 citations a year over 20 year(s) since 2008 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 4.2× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 3 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 8 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 1 / 4 | Last-listed author Andrew L. Robinson: h-index 14 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 0 / 3 | University of Tasmania: institution h-index 564 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 18945531) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 38 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2008.09.020
- PubMed: 18945531
- Original source →
- Free full text: Social Science & Medicine →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
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