Discrepancies between patients' assessments of outcome: qualitative study nested within a randomised controlled trial.

tal groups in the primary outcome measures (table): change of diabetes treatment (36% v 42%), lipid lowering drugs (9% v 12%), or blood pressure drugs (10% v 16%) and referral to dietician (13% v 10%). There were no differences in other interventions between the control and experimental groups. Among high risk patients, however, those in the experimental group were more likely to be prescribed blood pressure and lipid lowering drugs than those in the control group (P < 0.02, Mantel-Haenszel test). Despite this difference, the time until the next hospital outpatient appointment was the same in the two groups, with 24% in each group (39 in the experimental group and 38 in the control group) receiving an appointment in less than six months.