We are all aware of the dangers that face GPs when they visit patients in their homes.

Criterion 1.1. of the RACGP Standards For General Practice 3^rd Edition is dedicated to the delivery of Home and Other Visits.

The descriptor states:

“Regular patients of our practice are able to obtain visits from a GP (where such visits are safe and reasonable) in their home, residential aged care facility, residential care facility or hospital, both within and outside normal operating hours.”

But what about the community services who access patients for assessment and care provision?  Ballarat and District Nursing and Healthcare, for example, provides 24 hour care and services to:

• rural and urban areas
• Supported Residential Service (SRS)
• private houses
• workplaces

General Practice can assist these community services in hazard identification by including any information known about the patient’s home environment such as:

• patient’s contact details
• another contact person and details (very helpful if the patient has cognitive deficits, is deaf, or physically disabled)
• any known aggressors or people who may exhibit violent behavior
• dogs

When community services first visit a patient at home, they often use tools such as the Home Hazard Checklist (currently under review) to identify any hazards and alert other staff visiting.

However, early identification and more detailed information on GP referral can make their work safer, easier and more efficient.