A previous study of 828 consecutive attenders from eight Nottinghamshire practices revealed a median attendance of eight face to face consultations with GPs with approximately two thirds of the sample consulting between three and eleven consultations.
Of the sampled consultations, 62% had some discussion of the trial.
In the sampled consultations for these two families, both doctors had expressed certainty about the prognostic value of the MRD test.
Where parents believed in the prognostic certainty of the MRD test, we have seen that, in the sampled consultations, doctors had presented the MRD test with certainty.
The studies included large and small studies, representative and non-representative samples, consultations were timed in a variety of ways and the diagnosis of psychological problems was made sometimes by the doctor, sometimes by the patient and sometimes by an independent observer.
Nevertheless, we interviewed parents about their experiences of these consultations and our sample included consultations where oncologists gave test results that parents regarded as 'bad news'.
For most of the register abstraction study period (June 30 , 2001 November 14 , 2002 all consultations were abstracted; towards the end of the study period, a systematic sample of consultations was selected, due to limited resources.
Also noteworthy is that only eight people in this sample reported consultations with traditional healers.
A random sample of consultations and telephone calls are tape recorded and assessed for fidelity by an independent researcher.
We are currently developing the scale further by assessing a large sample of consultations in a real-world setting.
Within this small sample of consultations, there were instances where the clinical interaction and advice given did not follow existing New Zealand primary care guidelines.
