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Chapter 372Secondly, it is highly recommended to invest in recurring specific (postgraduate) training programmes for GPs. The relatively high prevalence of substance abuse and suicide in our study suggests that a proactive and preventive approach, aimed at identifying risk factors for MH problems and providing health education, should be part of this education. Thirdly, GPs should be aware of the importance of identifying and registering MID, both for good care provision and for research purposes. ID screening tools can be helpful for identifying MID and have been developed for GP practice, but further implementation is needed. 26, 27 Clear agreement should be reached by GPs about when and how MID is recorded. Fourthly, it is important that primary care is accessible for people with MID and that their (mental) health needs are met. Future research should address the nature of the identified high care utilisation in more detail. Our findings may be seen as a sign of additional healthcare needs and more intensive GP care provided to this patient group, putting a relatively high demand on primary care practices. As previous research indicated, GPs do not feel confident about providing care to people with ID, 28 particularly to those with additional MH problems. 9, 11 Support for GPs may help them better address these complex health needs and may improve the care that they provide. According to patients with ID, adaptations in how care is provided could be helpful, such as improving GPs’ communication skills, extra consultation time, continuity of care from the same GP, and involvement of family or carers in consultations and in information provision. 29, 30 Periodic health assessments, supported by an instrument, are seen as another way to identify (mental) health needs. 31 Finally, although our database contained no information on referrals and consultations, it is important for GPs to look to care professionals in their direct network for collaboration and support. Effective collaboration, in specific, is regarded as beneficial for the outcome of mental healthcare in primary care. 32 Therefore it is important to learn from best practices 32-34 and invest in (local) integrative and collaborative primary MH care models.It remains of utmost importance to actively engage both GPs and patients with MID in the development of the suggested improvement strategies to Katrien Pouls sHL.indd 72 24-06-2024 16:26