General practitioner reported follow-up visits among asthma patients in North Central Nigeria

Background: Despite the benefits of regular follow-up in the long-term care of asthma, no previous study has reported on it among asthma patients in Nigeria.
Objective: This survey was designed to evaluate GP-reported follow-up visits among asthma patients in North Central Nigeria.
Methods: It was a cross-sectional survey conducted among GPs in three North Central states of Nigeria.
Results: Overall, 48.3% of the GPs reported that their patients usually come for follow-up visits. About 63.6%, 40.0%, and 55.3% of the GPs in Kwara, Kogi, and Niger states, respectively, reported that their patients came for follow-up visits in the month prior to this study. Less than two-third of GPs in both private (55.1%) and public (56.8%) hospitals reportedly attended to patients on follow-up visits. About 46.5%, 37.5%, and 52.0% of the GPs who attended to patients <1 week, 1-2 weeks and >2 weeks prior to the study reported that their patients came for follow-up visits. There was significant difference (P = 0.04) in the reported follow-up visits by GPs who attended to ≥10 asthma patients compared to others. None of the nine GPs who reportedly treated ≥ 10 patients in the preceding month of the study attended to any patient on follow-up visits.
Conclusion: The GP-reported rates of follow-up visits in patients that are accessing asthma care from GPs practicing in the North Central part of Nigeria are low. Further studies to identify barriers to follow-up visits and how to correct them are therefore recommended.