THE CONTENT AND METHODOLOGY OF RESEARCH PAPERS PUBLISHED IN 3 UNITED-KINGDOM PRIMARY-CARE JOURNALS

Background. With the expansion of academic departments, the National R esearch and Development initiative, and the Culyer report, United King dom (UK) general practice research is undergoing a period of investmen t and change. Aim. To examine the content and methodological qualify o f UK-published general practice research, and in particular to focus o n the quantity and proportion of studies that were of high methodologi cal quality, namely randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Method. We ma nually searched three UK-published journals over a five-year period: t he British Journal of General Practice (BJGP), Family Practice, and th e British Medical Journal (BMJ), which has a section devoted to genera l practice research. Studies were classified according to the Internat ional Classification of Health Problems of Primary Health Care (ICHPPC -2). Results. Nearly half of published studies in UK primary care jour nals were concerned with either organization and administration issues in primary care or social problems (509 studies, 48%). Just over half were either qualitative studies or surveys of opinion or attitudes (5 28 studies, 50%). The overall number of RCTs was low (67 studies, 6%), and the proportion published has not changed over time (chi(2) for tr end = 3.79, df = 1, P = 0.051). In contrast to surgical journals, near ly one-fifth of studies in general practice followed a longtitudinal d esign (186 studies, 18%). Conclusions. The content and design of publi shed general practice research in the UK is varied and broad. The most robust methodological design should be the aim of all prospective res earchers in general practice.