Role Of Practitioner Research Articles

Knowledge and awareness of asbestos risk among General Practitioners: Validation of a questionnaire in an area with a high incidence of asbestos-related diseases

ObjectiveGiven the critical role of general practitioners (GPs) in the early diagnosis and management of asbestos-related diseases (ARDs), and the significant history of asbestos fibres pollution in Alessandria Local Health Authority (ASL AL), this project aimed to assess the knowledge and awareness of asbestos risks, as well as the experience in diagnosing ARDs among GPs working in Alessandria province, Northern Italy. MethodsA questionnaire was administered to 216 GPs from all ASL AL territorial districts during 26 Territorial Assistance Teams (EAT) meetings, held from September 2022 to January 2023. It contained 29 questions covering three main areas: ‘knowledge and awareness’, ‘competence and experience’, ‘sociodemographic characteristics and workload’. ResultsAlthough GPs were aware of the health hazards of asbestos (94 %) and the increased risk of mesothelioma from asbestos exposure (92.6 %), significant disparities and heterogeneity of knowledge were observed among territorial districts and by comparing Casale Monferrato district with all the others, particularly regarding asbestos exposure routes, reporting of occupational diseases, and mesothelioma latency. ConclusionsThis project provides a comprehensive overview of GP's knowledge, awareness and experience in managing ARDs, providing indications of customised training requirements. This evaluation could be extended to all areas with a history of previous asbestos exposure and provide a useful tool for policy makers to define and plan strategic actions on asbestos. This work could also be adapted to different realities with a history of environmental pollutant exposure other than asbestos, which pose a risk for the development of several diseases.

Clinical Research Practitioner: Transformation to a Competent Professional Through Reflective Practice.

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has significantly contributed to the growth of clinical research activities in the United Kingdom. Central to this expansion is the pivotal role of Clinical Research Practitioners (CRPs) within the healthcare organization. This narrative explores reflective practice as a dynamic tool and essential requirements for their transformation and development into competent CRPs. Additionally, this article adds to the growing literature to highlight the benefits of having a professionally registered CRP for NHS organizations. By weaving together personal insights, professional development, and the integration of acquired knowledge, the narrative illuminates the profound impact of reflective practice on the evolution of a skilled and adept CRP. This review adds to the current literature on the importance of reflective practice in improving professionalism and competency for registered CRPs. The narrative emphasizes lifelong learning and reflective practice integration in clinical research training programs. It suggests further research on workplace reflection for knowledge integration. This resource is valuable for CRPs, organizations, and policymakers, emphasizing professionalism, competency development, and reflective practice in clinical research.

Patient care pathway coordination: local organizations and definitions

Since 2009, the law has reinforced the role of the general practitioner in coordinating care in France. Various structures, such as coordination support systems and specific regional systems, have been set up to improve the efficiency of care pathways. Primary care teams and specialized care teams organize care around patients. Multi-professional health centers and health centers facilitate local collaboration between professionals.

Shining a Light on Hidden Containers and Invisible Systems

This article presents an analysis from the perspective of a participant-observer in the "Rethinking DF 2030" project, conducted in Brazil. In this project, Theory U was applied as a journey to foster integration between policymakers and the citizens for whom these policies are designed. The article sheds light on the importance of building both hidden and visible "containers"—purposefully held environments where the quality of collective attention aligns with intention. Through the author's active engagement in this project, the article simultaneously explores the methodological and experiential aspects of Theory U, including its capacity to guide and weave into the application of various other methodologies. The findings highlight both the challenges and potential of a Theory U practitioner's role in a highly complex participatory process.

Multidisciplinaire aanpak van obesitas bij kinderen in de eerste lijn: hoe doe je dat en waar kan het mislopen?

Multidisciplinary approach to childhood obesity in primary care: how do you do it and where can it go wrong? The prevalence of childhood obesity and the recently launched care pathway for children living with obesity in Belgium should prompt reflection on the role of the general practitioner (GP) in tackling childhood obesity. There is a need for research on the perspective of parents and multidisciplinary care providers in primary care concerning the facilitating and hindering factors of a constructively feasible multidisciplinary counselling program to treat obesity in children aged 2 to 17 years within primary care. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews conducted through 5 separate focus groups (FGs). These included 2 FGs consisting of 8 parents, 2 FGs with 17 primary care providers from 1 GP region and 1 FG with 8 secondary care providers from 1 pediatric multidisciplinary obesity center (PMOC). The data were thematically analyzed following the COREQ method (consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative studies). Caregivers and parents identified barriers and facilitating factors, and provided possible solutions on several themes. Not only organizational factors were cited, but also factors intrinsic or specific to the child and its environment. The importance of practical and communicative connections between care providers on the one hand and children and their environment on the other hand were emphasized. Finally, influencing social factors were also highlighted. By addressing the identified facilitating and impeding factors, a multidisciplinary approach for children with obesity in primary care could be threshold-reducing and more efficient, both for GPs as well as for professional and supportive primary care providers and parents.

Identification of raccoon rabies virus variant in a stray kitten: the role of veterinary practitioners in detection and reporting of a non-native zoonotic pathogen-Nebraska, 2023.

Rabies is a fatal encephalitic disease affecting all mammals. This report describes identification of raccoon rabies virus variant isolated from a stray kitten in an urban Midwestern city that is nonendemic for this virus variant. The kitten originally presented with nonspecific neurologic abnormalities. Astute veterinary, wildlife, and public health professionals played a critical role in the identification of this fatal zoonotic disease and the extensive public health and wildlife management response that ensued. This case serves as an important reminder of the risk of rabies in unvaccinated animals or those without known vaccination status, including stray animals.

AHP SO09 - Introduction of Registered Advanced Nurse Practitioner into Upper Gastrointestinal Cancer Surgical Service

Abstract Background The author whom is a nurse, works in a large University teaching hospital with a mission to deliver best quality care to patients, where its nursing philosophy ensures continued and consistent commitment in the provision of holistic patient centred care to the highest possible standard. The introduction of the new Registered Advanced Nurse Practitioner (RANP) role within the Upper GI Surgical Department is part of the expansion of the Upper Gastrointestinal cancer service within the hospital. Method At the nurse-led cancer surveillance clinic the RANP is authorised to assess, review and initiate diagnostic interventions for a specific agreed cohort of patients with Upper GI cancer. Results An Upper GI RANP has recently been recruited into the Upper Gastrointestinal cancer surgical service in the hospital and commenced reviewing patients on 11.09.23. The overall aim of the post is to deliver an advanced level of clinical nursing practice within the field of gastrointestinal cancer with the quality improvement objective to enhance patient experience within the hospitals Upper GI cancer service. Conclusion Cancer survivorship begins at the time of diagnosis and continues until the end of life (DOH; 2017). Optimising these patients’ quality of life is now a primary focus of the Irish Healthcare system. Focus has now shifted to living well with, through and beyond a cancer diagnosis (DOH; 2017). The National Cancer Strategy 2017- 2026 (DOH;2017) has highlighted that there is significant scope and need to expand the number of ANP’s in our cancer services particularly to run nurse-led clinics for follow-up and survivorship. This new ANP role within the Upper GI service will seek to address this need.

Female genital cosmetic procedures from the perspective of health practitioners: a systematic review of knowledge, attitude and practice studies

BackgroundCurrently, the popularity of female genital cosmetic procedures is on the rise worldwide. Despite the multiple roles of healthcare practitioners at different stages of women’s decision-making for these procedures, limited studies have been conducted in this area. This systematic review aimed to summarize the available qualitative and quantitative data from observational studies that investigated healthcare practitioners’ knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding female genital cosmetic procedures.MethodThe present systematic review was performed based on PRISMA guidelines. All published studies that examined the knowledge, attitudes and practices of healthcare practitioners regarding female genital cosmetic procedures were included. PubMed/Medline, Scopus, Web-of-science, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar were searched using related keywords until 30 November 2023. Quality assessment was performed using the Appraisal Tool for Cross-Sectional Studies and Checklist for Qualitative Research from the Joanna Briggs Institute.ResultsEight studies comprising 2063 healthcare practitioners met the inclusion criteria and were analysed. Based on the results, some healthcare practitioners in the included studies acknowledged the naturalness of the variety of female genitalia, but others considered very small labia as attractive. There was little agreement on the positive effects of female genital cosmetic procedures on improving women’s quality of life and sexual function in the included studies. Nearly all healthcare practitioners have seen women who had concerns about being natural of their genitalia. Meanwhile, approximately two-thirds of them had encountered women requesting female genital cosmetic procedures. Only three-quarters of healthcare practitioners felt confident in assessing the normality of genital appearance. The willingness to perform female genital cosmetic procedures was higher among male healthcare practitioners and plastic surgeons than among females and gynecologists.ConclusionThe results indicated that although a large number of healthcare practitioners had encountered women who were concerned about genitalia or requested genital cosmetic procedures, they did not have sufficient knowledge or favorable attitudes and practices in most related fields. Therefore, it is recommended to design educational interventions, formulate guidelines and make policies.

PROBLEMS OF THE ORGANIZATION OF THE STATE POLICY OF THE PROVISION OF MEDICAL SERVICES BY THE PRIMARY LINK OF MEDICAL AID IN UKRAINE

The article highlights key issues related to management at the level of primary health care in Ukraine. The focus is on aspects such as the growing role of primary care. Primary care is the foundation of the health care system, providing a patient's first contact with health services, prevention, diagnosis and treatment. It is especially important in the conditions of limited financial resources to continue the reforms of the medical industry in Ukraine. The article raises the issue of the availability of medical care: the relevance of management problems is due to uneven access to medical services in rural areas and remote regions. Improving the management of the medical field is necessary to overcome these difficulties. The article examines current problems in the field of primary medical care and ways to overcome them through the reform of state policy in the field of health care. The authors explore key challenges facing primary care, including insufficient funding, lack of qualified staff, uneven distribution of resources, and lack of effective governance mechanisms at various levels. Attention is paid to the issues of ensuring the availability of medical services, the quality of medical care and the implementation of new models of the organization of medical institutions. The article analyzes the reformative steps aimed at improving the functioning of the primary health care system, in particular, the introduction of family medicine and increasing the role of general practitioners. The role of state funding and the involvement of local communities in the management of medical institutions is considered separately. The conclusions emphasize the importance of improving the state's primary health care policy by strengthening financial support, infrastructure development, and improving the qualifications of medical workers to ensure a sustainable and effective health care system in Ukraine. The topic of economic challenges and management efficiency is interesting for analysis. Optimizing the use of financial resources requires their effective use, finding ways to increase the economic sustainability of healthcare institutions.

Hood academics and the strength of street knowledge: The role of educators and practitioners from marginalized backgrounds in nonprofit education

ABSTRACT Access to higher education has allowed a new generation of academics and practitioners to emerge from low-income, marginalized, and racialized backgrounds. A movement of “hood” academics have now moved into all areas of nonprofit education, and this group does not see their socioeconomic and marginalized background as a weakness. The lived experiences and “street knowledge” of these individuals are reshaping pedagogy and instruction in the classroom. Educators now resemble the diversity of populations served in all facets of society and tiers of education. These “hood” academics bring resilience and experience that is not shared by their more privileged colleagues. These individuals integrate their lived experience as a marginalized person in the United States into nonprofit education. This study will apply a Critical Race lens to examine the unique experiences of being a “hood” academic and its influence on pedagogy and instruction in nonprofit education.

Evolving HIV service delivery: scalability of pharmacist-led care

Abstract Introduction With declining healthcare budgets and numbers of HIV medical trainees1, workforce innovation is crucial to sustain delivery of HIV care. Since local introduction of an advanced pharmacist practitioner (APP) role, we have demonstrated the ability of pharmacists to provide holistic care to people living with HIV, including those with complex medical needs. Scaling up pharmacist-led care may be a potential solution to sustain service delivery2 whilst addressing the needs of an ageing cohort3. Further APP clinics were introduced with consultant support and supervision. Aim We aim to evaluate the impact and outcomes of these APP clinics. Method Prospective data collection of consultations conducted by four pharmacist practitioners (PP) across four HIV clinics between January to December 2023. Surveys were distributed after the appointment to capture service users’ opinions on the pharmacists’ role and care provided. Ethical approval was not required as this does not constitute as research. This was registered as a service evaluation with the research and innovation team at Chelsea and Westminster NHS Foundation Trust. All patient information is anonymised. Results A total of 634 consultations (513 individuals) within 170 clinical sessions were conducted during the 12 month period: 585 (92%) in person; 176 (34%) female; median age 52 (IQR 43-58); 233 (45%) non-white ethnicity; mean number of co-morbidities 2 (0-8); 87 (17%) had more than 5 co-medications (0-21); 87% virologically suppressed [viral load (VL) <50cp/mL]. Of 55 individuals seen with detectable VL, 32 (58%) resuppressed within 6 months. PPs have made 522 interventions and investigations in total, for example 147 referrals to other specialities such as dietitians and mental health services, 112 imaging requested (e.g DEXA and liver ultrasounds) and 99 initiation or switching of antiretroviral therapy (ART). Following investigations, 44 new medical conditions were identified and managed by the PPs which included namely 18 cases of micronutrient deficiencies, 8 cases of skin conditions and 6 cases of metabolic disorders. From the survey, 55% (30/55) of service users were aware that pharmacists could review their overall health. All (100%) respondents felt that the quality of care received met or exceeded expectations and 54 (98%) would attend a pharmacist-led appointment in future. Discussion/Conclusion We have previously successfully demonstrated implementation of pharmacist practitioner clinics as a novel way of utilising and developing the pharmacist workforce. We demonstrate scalability of this service delivery model in our large, urban multi-site centre by successfully increasing the number of pharmacist practitioner clinics from three clinics to six clinics week. The positive feedback from service users indicates high acceptability of this model. HIV services may consider investment into mobilising senior pharmacists to facilitate expansion of this advanced practitioner role in order to address increasing levels of co-morbidities, polypharmacy and complex medical needs observed in our ageing population. The knowledge base of HIV pharmacists means they are ideally placed to facilitate communication across sectors, specialties and disciplines. Future development plans include expanding to other specialist areas such as HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis, contraception, gender health and research delivery and enhanced skills such as phlebotomy, injectable ART administration.

The role of advanced clinical practitioners in gastroenterology: a phenomenological perspective from practice and research

This comprehensive review explores the pivotal role of advanced clinical practitioners (ACPs) in gastroenterology care and the integration of phenomenological approaches in both practice and research domains. ACPs in gastroenterology play multifaceted roles encompassing clinical assessment, triage, diagnosis, treatment and patient management. By adopting a phenomenological approach in practice, ACPs can transcend traditional biomedical models, prioritise patients' lived experiences and provide personalised, holistic care. In research, phenomenological methods offer valuable insights into patients' subjective experiences, informing evidence-based practice and contributing to the advancement of gastroenterology care. Through illustrative examples and critical analysis, this review highlights the significance of integrating phenomenological approaches in enhancing patient outcomes and improving the quality of care in gastroenterology services.

Determinants of Hypertension in Pregnancy (HDK) Disorders

Background: Hypertensive Disease in Pregnancy (HDK) is a vascular disorder that occurs during pregnancy, arises during pregnancy or in the postpartum periode, and is one of the most common causes of maternal death. Objective: this study was to determine how factors of having a history of hypertension, obesity, and using hormonal birth control impact the incidence of hypertension Disease in pregnancy (HDK). Metodes: the research approach used was analytic observation with a croos sectional design. This study involved 332 pregnant women who come to the Health Center. A sampel random sampling technique, with a sample size of 183 was used. In this study, the independent variables were history of hypertension, obesity, and hormonal birth control use; the incidence of HDK was the dependent variable. Data was collected using a documention study approach with an observation sheets. To analyse the data, a logistic regression statistical test was used with an error rate of α 0.05. The results showed that pregnant women with HDK were exposed to hypertension 45.6%, and hormonal birth control by 36.3%. The result of bivariate analysis of hypertension history with HDK is o.o1 < α 0.05, and the variable of obesity with HDK is 0.024 < α 0.05 and the variable of hormonal birth control history with HDK is 0.21% < α 0.05. The conclusion of the results showed that of the three factors contributing to the incidence of HDK, only the history of hypertension and obesity had a significant influence, with a history of hypertension accounting for 9.9% of HDK cases. Therefore, it is recommended that Strengthing Integrated Antenatal care for increasing the role of mindwives and general practitioners in better screening of pregnant women at risk.

Secondhand Smoke Exposure in Pediatric Patients: What Is the Nurse Practitioner's Role?

Secondhand Smoke Exposure in Pediatric Patients: What Is the Nurse Practitioner's Role?

Preconception care.

Preconception care (PCC) entails a comprehensive suite of interventions to improve the health of potential parents, their babies and future generations. PCC is not limited to a first pregnancy, and addressing health and wellbeing is equally important in the interconception period. The aims of this paper are to discuss the evidence for and components of PCC, as well as the role of the general practitioner in the delivery of PCC. It is estimated that 90% of women and over 50% of men have preconception health issues to address. Although all people stand to benefit from PCC, certain population groups experience increased risk of adverse outcomes and require more targeted attention. Although most do not present for a dedicated PCC consultation, asking about pregnancy intention can start the conversation. Evidence shows that interventions delivered in primary care can improve preconception health knowledge and reduce preconception risk factors.

Defining the urology nurse practitioner in Australia and New Zealand: A Delphi study.

Nurse practitioners with roles in specialty environments face challenges including uncertain role expectations and achieve urology expertise with on-the-job training, mentoring, and independent study. This creates a wide variety of preparation and role descriptions. This study employed Delphi methodology to identify essential components of the urology nurse practitioner (NP) role in Australia and New Zealand, representing an inaugural description of the role. This Delphi study was completed in two rounds. Participants were a nonrandom panel of experts with experience as a full-time urology NP. A definition for the urology NP in Australia and New Zealand is proposed: "The urology nurse practitioner uses critical thinking, complex decision-making, clinical reasoning, advanced assessment skills and clinical expertise, offering acute and chronic care to individuals needing urologic health care, including office-based urology procedures as appropriate. This care is provided in an environment of autonomous practice, with a basis of graduate education and relevant specialty clinical experience, and this practice can extend across health care settings and serve as a model to the wider NP profession." Outpatient urology procedures were ranked highly and deemed integral to the Urology NP role. This may reflect the declining number of urologists and efforts to maintain urology access for local populations. Professional roles of the NP were given less weight by participants. The project offers a contemporary definition of the urology NP role that can be offered to educators and other stakeholders as the role continues to evolve in Australia and New Zealand.

What are the attitudes and perceptions of general practitioners about the role of nurse practitioners in the community care setting: A scoping review

BackgroundThe Nurse Practitioner role in Australia is slowly expanding, with a well-established body of evidence supporting their introduction. Yet, there is a lack of consistent support from the medical profession for this role. Nurse Practitioners wishing to work in the community setting may, therefore, experience resistance from General Practitioners. ObjectiveTo identify and explore the attitudes and perceptions of Australian General Practitioners about Nurse Practitioners' community settings. To explore what is the view of GPs outside of Australia on this topic. MethodA scoping review of the Cochrane, MEDLINE, Psych INFO, and CINHAL databases was undertaken from 1995 to April 2023 and reported using PRISMA. Quality evaluation tools devised by Dixon-Woods et al. (2005) and previously used by Paterson et al. (2015) were used to evaluate the included studies. A narrative synthesis was then undertaken using the method described by Whittemore and Knafl (2005). FindingsThe scoping review identified 1623 potential publications. After a comparison of the title and abstract to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 20 publications underwent an in-depth review, eight publications met the inclusion criteria for a full review. The review did not identify a publication from Australia. Elsewhere the attitudes of General Practitioners were influenced by the lack of definition of the Nurse Practitioner role, a lack of knowledge of the Nurse Practitioner skill level, fear of service duplication, deterioration in patient relationships, who had responsibility for the role and funding for the role. ConclusionThere is a lack of evidence in an Australian context to determine if General Practitioners in Australia have similar views to their international counterparts. Careful planning needs to be undertaken to overcome potential issues and to enable the Nurse Practitioner role to be effectively implemented in an Australian community setting.

Burnout in Infection Control Practitioners During Public Health Crisis Events: A Mixed Methods Systematic Review Protocol

Background Infection prevention and control work environments are highly complex in nature and have long been associated with crisis events including serious infectious disease outbreaks. The role of infection control practitioners shifted exponentially during the COVID-19 pandemic and with this rapid and nebulous change came anxiety, emotional exhaustion and ultimately burnout. Burnout at work generally occurs as a response to chronic and prolonged exposure to emotionally challenging events, causing emotional exhaustion, feelings of cynicism, and lack of accomplishment at work. This systematic review aims to investigate burnout in infection control practitioners during public health crisis events (major outbreaks, epidemics, and pandemics) in upper-middle and high-income countries on a global scale. Methods A mixed-methods systematic review will be carried out and will include qualitative, quantitative and primary mixed-methods studies that investigate the different elements of burnout, during public health crisis events. After an initial scoping literature search, up to six databases will be searched for studies on burnout in relation to infection prevention practitioners. Study quality will be checked using standardised JBI critical appraisal tools. The proposed review will follow the JBI convergent integrated approach for mixed methods systematic reviews. Following data extraction, quantitative data will then be converted into ‘qualitized data’ in the form of textual descriptions. Discussion It is well documented that adverse conditions during public health crisis events can lead to burnout. This systematic review will investigate of burnout in infection control practitioners in upper-middle and high-income countries during public health crisis events. The findings will inform healthcare professionals, senior policy makers and researchers and will help contribute to a richer understanding of burnout and associated factors in infection control practitioners. Protocol registration number PROSPERO 2024 CRD42024508996.

The role of emergency medicine specialists and general practitioners in yellow zone patient management: A case in the Sakarya Province

AbstractBackgroundEmergency departments in Turkey employ both emergency medicine specialists (EMSs) and general practitioners due to an insufficient number of EMSs. Patients are triaged into green, yellow, and red codes based on urgency. Typically, EMSs manage more critical patients (yellow and red codes), while general practitioners handle less urgent cases (green codes).ObjectiveThis study investigates differences in patient management approaches between EMSs and general practitioners in the yellow zone of an emergency department in the Sakarya Province.MethodThis retrospective, cross‐sectional study was conducted at the Sakarya Training and Research Hospital from 31 December 2020 to 31 December 2021. The study included patients aged 18 and older who were assigned to the yellow zone and discharged by the attending physician. Data on patient monitoring times, consultation requests, hospitalization rates, resource utilization, readmission rates, and hospital revenue contributions were collected and analyzed. Statistical analyses were performed using IBM SPSS version 21, comparing the performance of EMSs and general practitioners.ResultThe study included 59 physicians (14 EMSs and 45 general practitioners) and a large number of patients. EMSs had significantly more experience, shorter consultation request times, and higher ICU admission rates. They also ordered fewer MRIs and USGs per patient and made more consultation requests. There was no significant difference between EMSs and general practitioners in terms of the number of examinations, patient observation times, ward hospitalization rates, CT orders, readmission rates, and hospital revenue contributions.ConclusionEMSs demonstrated more efficient use of emergency department resources, effective consultation processes, and higher ICU admission rates, indicating better patient management. Despite the limited scope of this single‐center study, the findings highlight the importance of EMSs in improving emergency care quality. Further research is needed to validate these results across multiple centers.

Inadequate health literacy and higher healthcare utilisation among older adults in Switzerland: cross-sectional evidence from a population-based study.

Population ageing in Switzerland poses significant challenges, including for the healthcare system. Inadequate health literacy can hinder individuals' ability to seek appropriate treatments and navigate the healthcare system efficiently. This study explores the associations between health literacy and the number of consultations with general practitioners and healthcare specialists in a population-based sample of adults aged 58+ in Switzerland. We used data from 1424 older adults who participated in Wave 8 (2020) of the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). The analysis focuses on two outcomes: the reported number of consultations with (1) general practitioners or (2) healthcare specialists in the year prior to the interview. Health literacy, i.e. the ability to find, understand, assess and apply health information, is measured using the short version of the European Health Literacy Survey questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q16). The final health literacy score ranged from 0 to 16 and was categorised into three health literacy levels: inadequate (0-8), problematic (9-12) and sufficient (13-16). Bivariate analyses were conducted using Kruskal-Wallis tests. Partial associations were examined using multivariate generalised Poisson regression models controlling for key sociodemographic, regional and health-related variables. Overall, 68.5% of the respondents were classified as having sufficient health literacy, while the health literacy level of 23.5% and 7.9% of respondents was classified as problematic or inadequate, respectively. The median number of general practitioner consultations and specialist visits was 2 and 1, respectively, both with an interquartile range of 1. Lower levels of health literacy were statistically significantly associated (p = 0.0011) with a higher number of general practitioner consultations in the year prior to the interview. By contrast, we did not find any significant association between health literacy and the number of specialist consultations. This study finds that lower health literacy is associated with higher healthcare utilisation for older adults in Switzerland. The findings may suggest that general practitioners could have a significant role as advisors for individuals with low levels of health literacy, while a similar pattern is not observed for specialists. This discrepancy might be attributed, at least in part, to the role of general practitioners as intermediaries between patients and specialised care providers. Ensuring accessibility to general practitioners, particularly for individuals with low health literacy, could prove to be a beneficial strategy in addressing the healthcare requirements of this particularly vulnerable patient group. Additionally, improving health literacy in the population may provide further health benefits and lead to resource savings.