GP Answering Machines: A Barrier to Accessing Doctor-On-Call

Aim: GP out-of-hours services are an important part of primary care provision supporting people to live independently at home for longer. Older people mainly call their GP surgery for the out-of-hours service phone number, when needing a doctor at night. This study examines the impact of GP answering machine messages on older persons seeking to access GP out-of-hours.

Methods: A content analysis approach was used to examine audio recordings of all outgoing answering machine messages from GP practices (n=33) in two counties in Ireland. Results Both technical and interpretive issues were identified with outgoing answering machine recordings. Messages contained elements linked with information processing challenges including; low volume (82%, n=27); excessively fast delivery (51.5%, n=17); mixed instructions (21%, n=7); and multiple phone numbers (61%, n=20).

Conclusion: GP answering machines present a barrier for people requiring out-of-hours primary care. The information processing ability of older people, often in urgent need when seeking a doctor outof-hours, may be compromised due to stress, as well as illness or age-related physical challenges. Answering machine messages, providing care directions, should be created to maximise the potential for all patients to acquire the necessary details for accessing primary care outside office hours.