Clinical practices and behaviour of community doctors during SARS epidemic
| Clinical practices | n (%) | Solo (%) | Group (%) | Private (%) | Public (%) | Exposed (%) | Non-exposed (%) | High (%) | Low (%) | High (%) | Low (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *Significant at 0.05 level; **significant at 0.01 level. | |||||||||||
| Wore mask during all consultations | 130 (97.7) | 100.0 | 93.2* | 98.3 | 93.8 | 96.4 | 100.0 | 97.1 | 98.5 | 100.0 | 96.3 |
| Wore goggles | 37 (27.4) | 27.8 | 25.0 | 25.6 | 37.5 | 28.9 | 25.0 | 27.9 | 26.9 | 32.6 | 23.5 |
| Wore gowns | 66 (48.9) | 46.7 | 54.5 | 45.3 | 81.3** | 55.4 | 38.5 | 52.9 | 44.8 | 63.0 | 42.0* |
| Washed hands after seeing, examining a patient | 93 (70.5) | 70.5 | 69.8 | 69.3 | 75.0 | 69.1 | 72.5 | 68.7 | 72.3 | 67.4 | 70.5 |
| Insisted patient wearing mask | 79 (58.5) | 57.1 | 60.5 | 55.6 | 75.0 | 65.1 | 48.1* | 68.1 | 48.5* | 65.2 | 53.1 |
| Routinely tested patient’s temperature | 92 (68.1) | 68.1 | 69.8 | 70.1 | 56.3 | 71.1 | 63.5 | 71.0 | 65.2 | 71.7 | 66.7 |
| Kept greater distance from patients | 47 (34.8) | 36.3 | 32.6 | 35.0 | 37.5 | 30.1 | 42.3 | 37.7 | 31.8 | 34.8 | 33.3 |
| Saw patients at a faster pace | 21 (15.6) | 12.1 | 23.3 | 10.3 | 56.3** | 18.1 | 11.5 | 20.3 | 10.6 | 21.7 | 11.1 |
| Avoided physical examination | 10 (7.4) | 5.5 | 11.6 | 6.0 | 18.8 | 6.0 | 9.6 | 10.1 | 4.5 | 8.7 | 7.4 |
| Requested more blood tests and/or chest radiograph | 103 (76.3) | 71.4 | 86.0 | 74.4 | 87.5 | 80.7 | 69.2 | 76.8 | 75.8 | 78.3 | 75.3 |
| Over prescribed antibiotics | 33 (24.4) | 26.4 | 18.6 | 23.1 | 25.0 | 30.1 | 15.4* | 23.2 | 25.8 | 28.3 | 19.8 |
| Own appointments postponed/cancelled | 42 (31.1) | 27.5 | 39.5 | 29.1 | 50.0 | 34.9 | 25.0 | 31.9 | 30.3 | 37.0 | 28.4 |
| Specialist appointments postponed/cancelled | 22 (16.3) | 11.0 | 27.9* | 13.7 | 37.5* | 16.9 | 15.4 | 15.9 | 16.7 | 19.6 | 13.6 |
| Difficulties in making specialty referrals | 17 (12.6) | 13.2 | 9.3 | 10.3 | 25.0 | 10.8 | 15.4 | 10.1 | 15.2 | 17.4 | 8.6 |
| Closed the clinic because of SARS | 10 (7.4) | 8.8 | 4.5 | 8.5 | 0.0 | 10.8 | 1.9* | 8.7 | 6.0 | 15.2 | 3.7* |
| Reduced working hour because of SARS | 7 (5.1) | 6.6 | 2.3 | 5.9 | 0.0 | 6.0 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 6.0 | 4.3 | 6.1 |
| Quarantined until confirmation of a suspected case | 26 (19.4) | 21.3 | 15.9 | 19.8 | 18.8 | 10.8 | 33.3** | 22.4 | 16.4 | 6.5 | 27.5** |
| Quarantined for 10 days after a probable case | 75 (55.6) | 57.8 | 50.0 | 58.1 | 31.3* | 50.6 | 63.5 | 55.9 | 55.2 | 37.0 | 66.7** |