Insomnia Management in the Australian Primary Care Setting

ABSTRACT

Background and Objective: Insomnia is one of the most prevalent and costly sleep disorders presenting in general practice, and when left untreated, has major health consequences. However, studies are limited on how general practitioners respond to this health issue, especially since the reconceptualization of insomnia in DSM 5. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore how insomnia is diagnosed and treated in Australian general practices. Participants: Twenty-four (54% male) general practitioners were recruited throughout the greater Sydney metropolitan area in New South Wales using the professional network of research team members and snowballing technique. Methods: Participants were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide. The audio-taped interviews were transcribed verbatim and a framework approach was used for analysis of transcribed data. Results: Participant’s responses highlighted that despite being a frequent presentation, insomnia is often trivialized with a low recognition rate in general practices. Lack of support and clear and effective management guidelines for general practitioners are the perceived barriers to early recognition of insomnia in general practices. Treating the underlying causes and initiating the treatment with general practitioners to manage insomnia. Medications including off-label antidepressants are often prescribed based on perceived patient expectation for a prescription. Conclusion: Findings of this exploratory study suggest the need for clearly contextualized guidelines that include information about a patient’s insomnia experience and treatment expectations. Another significant implication of this study is the need to develop and evaluate a model of collaborative sleep health services in general practice.

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank all the participating general practitioners for their time and valuable contribution to this study.