Testimonials from GPs who took part in the pilot study
“It was a pleasure to meet with Catherine and Kate to discuss the project. Prior to commencement of the pilot I felt somewhat nervous about how patients would receive the information I was going to offer them about the study. I decided to introduce the idea of it at the very end of the first consultation, just as the patient was about to leave the room. I would say something like ‘By the way just before you go, on a separate matter, there is a project running at present which aims to look at the patient experience of this new service, with a view to improving the service as we go.’ I would give patients the written information to take away with them. I told them that they didn’t need to decide on whether they wanted to participate right now, and that it was separate from the service, so I wouldn’t be asking them either way. When they returned at the second visit I would mention the study at the very end of the visit and allow them time to fill the form privately. I never asked if they were participating, but many of them volunteered that they thought the project was a good idea and were keen to give feedback.
Sometimes when the consultation was emotional and difficult I would wonder if it would be too intrusive to discuss the project. However, even in those situations I found that women were at least receptive to considering the idea of the project. It was humbling to see that even in times of great distress people can be incredibly generous with their time and experience, particularly if they felt it can be used to improve the experience of others.”
“It was a privilege to be asked to take part in the pilot fieldwork of this study. Abortion care is a completely new model of care in this country and we are all learning as we go along. I appreciate how important research is in this area so we can find out early on what we are doing well, what we are not doing so well on and what we can improve on. I can see a lot of planning and effort went into the collection of data for this project. It was all very professional from start to finish.
I really enjoyed the interview with Catherine Conlon. Though it was an hour long it certainly felt a lot shorter. I discovered I had an awful lot more to talk about than I expected!
I would highly recommend anyone thinking of getting involved in this study to go ahead. There is minimal work involved for the GP and it is very sensitively presented to the woman herself.”