The pattern of prescribing.

During four sample weeks a detailed survey was made of all contacts with patients, whether in their homes, at the surgery, or elsewhere. This was, in effect, an experimental attempt at a caseload analysis, with the aim of showing not only the location of doctor-patient contacts but also the proportion of contacts requiring drugs as compared with advice, the relationship between the cost of drugs and age, sex, diagnosis, and therapeutic intent and perhaps most important in view of the discussion concerning the place of family doctors in medical care, the level of diagnosis made, that is, the relative amounts of presumptive and definitive diagnosis. The method used was simple. A carbon copy was kept of every prescribing form E.C.10 issued; this shows normally the type and amount of drugs or dressings prescribed, the name and address of the patient and the age (if under fourteen). On the reverse, details of the patient's sex, age, diagnosis, and the location of the contact-home, surgery, or elsewhere (which was specified), were added. An assessment was also made as to whether the diagnosis was symptomatic, presumptive, or definitive and further whether the complaint was: