Barriers to prescribing of long‐acting reversible contraception (LARC) by general practitioner registrars: A cross‐sectional questionnaire
Rachel Turner, Amanda Tapley, Sally Sweeney, Parker Magin
Abstract
Long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) is highly effective but uptake in Australia is low. We aimed to establish general practitioner (GP) registrars' (vocational trainees') perspectives on barriers to prescribing LARC. We conducted a cross-sectional questionnaire-based study of 191 GP registrars in NSW and ACT. Outcome factors were levels of agreement with eight barriers to prescribing LARC. We found the most-reported barriers to prescribing LARC were limited access to training and limited opportunities to maintain skills. Registrars perceived greater barriers to the use of intrauterine devices, compared to contraceptive implants, regarding indemnity insurance, difficulty accessing training, and insufficient insertion opportunities to maintain skills.