A Study of the diagnostic perception of the primary care physicians in Xi'an city concerning of the common cold among the children and the influencing factors

Objective To investigate the mastery degree of community-based general practitioners of Xi'an City on diagnosis and treatment knowledge of common colds in children and their attitude to improve diagnosis and treatment level, analyze related influencing factors and then further determine the causes of nonstandard diagnosis and treatment of common colds in children in the communities and seek corresponding solutions. Methods The method of cross-sectional study was employed to carry out a questionnaire survey on 118 general practitioners from 49 community health service centers in 6 districts of Xi'an City from February to March 2017. The survey contents cover general conditions, diagnosis and treatment knowledge related to common colds in children and willingness to improve diagnosis and treatment level. Results ①47.5% of the general practitioners of Xi'an City had poor knowledge about diagnosis and treatment of common colds in children and 52.5% of them had a good grasp. ②There was difference in the cognition degree of general practitioners with different years of clinical work experience on the concepts of cold, flu and common cold (P<0.05); the preferred treatment options determined by general practitioners with different titles were also significantly different (P<0.05). ③76.3% of the general practitioners held positive attitudes towards the improvement of diagnosis and treatment level of common colds in children while 23.7% were negative; among them, general practitioners with different educational background and income levels had different attitudes towards the improvement of diagnosis and treatment level of common colds in children (P<0.05). ④Multi-factor logistic regression analysis shows that educational background is the factor influencing the attitudes of the general practitioners towards the improvement of diagnosis and treatment level of common colds in children, and general practitioners with low educational background held relatively negative attitudes. Conclusion General practitioners of Xi'an City should improve their mastery degree on diagnosis and treatment knowledge of common colds in children. They hold a relatively positive attitude towards the improvement of diagnosis and treatment level of common colds in children, especially general practitioners with higher educational background; attention should be paid to continuing education of general practitioners, to give full play to their initiatives to improve the quality of diagnosis, treatment and prevention services for common colds in children in the communities.