Table 5

Perceived barriers for managing CVD patients

Family Physicians

General Internists

Overall

Adverse effects of drugs

50.4%

52.3%

51.1%

Patient adherence

73.7%

74.1%

73.8%

Presence of co-morbid conditions

59.6%

56.3%

58.4%

Cost of medications

89.4%

87.7%

88.8%

Number of drugs needed for adequate blood

pressure control

74.0%

75.1%

74.4%

Patient understanding of treatment goals

53.8%

51.4%

52.9%

Adequate time to address lifestyle issues with

patients

52.2%

55.4%

53.4%

Adequate patient-education tools regarding

lifestyle issues

44.0%

47.1%

45.1%

Knowledge and skills to provide dietary

recommendations

46.2%

47.8%

46.9%

Knowledge and skills to facilitate patient

adherence

44.7%

52.0%

47.4%

Each item was rated on a 1–5 Likert scale (1 = not a significant barrier, 5 = significant barrier).

Percentage reported represents those who indicated a 4 or 5 on the scale.

CVD, cardiovascular disease

Overall refers to the combined results of family physicians and general internists

Doroodchi et al. BMC Family Practice 2008 9:42   doi:10.1186/1471-2296-9-42