Abstract

Background. Rural general practitioners (GPs) encounter unique challenges in accessing continuing professional development (CPD). E-learning offers a potential solution by overcoming geographic and time constraints, particularly when the content is relevant to the rural primary care context.

Objectives. To identify rural GPs’ preferences regarding the format, duration, and content of e-learning and to assess their current engagement with and awareness of CPD specific to rural primary care.

Materials and methods. A single cross-sectional online survey was distributed through 2 recruitment channels: the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) in the UK and the European Rural and Isolated Practitioners Association (EURIPA), a pan-European network of the World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA). A total of 157 RCGP members responded to the survey, with an unknown response rate; 30 of 94 active EURIPA members responded after the survey was distributed through its newsletter and Google Group. The survey assessed e-learning engagement, preferred formats and durations, and priority topics. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the responses.

Results. Five of the 67 survey participants who answered the question on whether they used any rural primary care-relevant e-learning responded positively (8%). Preferred formats for rural primary care-relevant e-learning included interactive e-modules, webinars, online lectures, and podcasts; the preferred duration was 30–40 min. Priority topics included emergency care, mental health and addiction, multimorbidity and complexity, managing risk and uncertainty, frailty, and telemedicine.

Conclusions. Rural GPs favor short, interactive, context-specific e-learning. These findings can guide the design of pan-European rural primary care modules. Future studies should evaluate educational effectiveness and implementation feasibility.