Abstract Background Family physicians (FP), comprising general practitioners and pediatricians, may be considered as key pillars of the gateway to the healthcare system. In the context of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), patients most commonly consult them when they experience first symptoms of IBD, then later for e.g., age-related health conditions. It is therefore interesting to investigate the role FP may play in the health trajectory of IBD patients, as well as how the collaboration with gastroenterologists (GE) stands. Objectives of the study were to understand how comfortable FD are with managing clinical situations typical of IBD patients and how they collaborate with GE, in a multicultural country with a fragmented decentralized healthcare system. Methods We conducted a survey based on case vignettes to assess clinical attitudes of GPs. Vignettes were proposed to the Sentinella network, comprising FD initially involved in sentinel surveillance of communicable diseases in Switzerland. The study duration was 8 weeks, from July to August 2025. We performed a descriptive analysis of vignette-case answers, with group comparisons where appropriate. Results Sixty-eight FDs completed a total of 332 vignettes (60% men, 34% females (6% mix-gender group practices)), 73% had their practice in urban area and 27% in peri-urban / rural area. The median (IQR)number of IBD patients followed by GPs was 5 (3.5-10) and ranges between 1 to 150, depending on regions and proximity of university hospitals / specialized practices for IBD. 65% of men answered they were mostly comfortable with IBD care, as compared to 43% for females, 13% were not; 23% reported a currently complete (75% partial) delegation of IBD care to GE, but an ideal delegation in favor of less delegation. Ranked on a 10-point scale, median (IQR) responsibility for vaccination of IBD patients was ranked 8 (7-10), knowledge on vaccination 7 (5-8), IBD treatment 5.5 (5-7), CRC screening in IBD 5 (4-7), responsibility in CRC screening 8 (6-10), Fig1. 66% of FD reported receiving mostly no recommendations on vaccination from GE, and 41% no recommendations on therapy surveillance. Conclusion First results show regional variations in number of patients followed by FD, indicating IBD patients may choose to consult primarily GE for their health issues. FD responsibility and confidence on IBD care is rated high to moderate for vaccination, treatment or CRC screening. Ratings show higher self-rated responsibility but lower knowledge on the matter, with gender differences. Conflict of interest: Dr. Pittet, Valérie: No conflict of interest Mottet, Christian: No conflict of interest Mueller, Yolanda: No conflict of interest
Golay et al. (Thu,) studied this question.