Family practice research networks - Experiences from 3 countries

Access to data about the clinical problems. patients, and processes that ch aracterise family practice is essential for the development of this special ty. Practice-based research networks (PBRNs) play an increasing role in obt aining these data. We compared 3 PBRNs: one in Wisconsin in the United States, one in Wessex i n the United Kingdom, and one in Nijmegen in the Netherlands. We organized our data into 4 key areas for review: the mission of the network, its contr ibution to the evidence base of family medicine, the management of the netw ork, and the financing of the network infrastructure. Extending the evidence base of family practice is the overriding objective of these networks, and their main focus is on common morbidities. They prov ide access to unselected patient populations, but there are differences in their size. There are aspects of PBRNs that are common in countries with different heal th care systems, despite the fact that local circumstances-the research mis sion or the characteristics of the health care system under which they oper ate-determine their form and structure. Networks develop over time and thei r focus and activities may evolve. Financial support for these networks con tinues to be a problem.