Factors determining prescriber's satisfaction with orthotic services

In order to investigate prescribersatisfaction with the footwear services provided for diabetic patients a questionnaire survey of delegates attending a diabetic foot conference in the UK was carried out.

The 92 replies from 104 departments showed that prescribes' satisfaction with their orthotic services was closely related to how often the prescriber and orthotist saw their patients in joint consultations (Chi2 for trend, 2p < 0.002). Satisfaction with services provided by orthotists who were employed by the NHS was no different from that with services where the orthotists were employed by a manufacturer. Orthotists must be fully integrated members of the diabetic foot care team, and the service must be provided in such a way as to facilitate joint consultations beween prescriber and orthotist.