Table 4.

Safety-netting advice conditions/symptoms to look out for

Category	Frequency verbalised in all consultations n	Frequency per problem (N= 555)n (%)
New specific symptom or condition
‘Skin starts to break down ’, ‘cough up any blood ’, ‘indigestion pains’	197	87 (15.7)
Current illness or symptoms persist
‘If you feel it ’s no better in a fortnight, come back and see me.’	179	106 (19.1)
Current illness or symptoms worsen
‘If you feel by all means that things have got worse […] let us know and we’ll see her sooner.’	74	50 (9.0)
Other non-specific condition
Develop new ‘symptoms’, ‘want to come back’, ‘not tolerating it’, ‘getting fed up’, ‘questions’	64	54 (9.7)
Any ‘problems’/‘issues’
‘Any problems in the meanwhile, give me a shout.’	49	55 (9.9)
Return of previous symptoms
‘Come back, please, if you have any return of your symptoms.’	41	27 (4.9)
Need
‘I’ll see you in 2 months or sooner if need be.’	23	23 (4.1)
Concerned, worried, or struggling
‘If you’re worried, about any of that, come back to me.’	18	18 (3.2)
Current condition changes
‘If anything has changed in the interim, we’ll see you again.’	17	14 (2.5)
Change in ‘wellness’
‘If you’re feeling unwell, then leave me a message and I’ll ring you back.’	9	8 (1.4)
Have not heard about a referral/appointment
‘You should hear within the next couple of weeks. If you haven’t heard anything, you can let us know and we can chase that up for you.’ (2-week wait skin cancer referral)	9	7 (1.3)
Starts to limit function
‘If it becomes […] so painful you can’t walk, come back.’	7	7 (1.3)
Implicit conditional
‘So, 3 months, if not before.’	5	9 (1.6)
All symptoms/conditions	692	257 (46.3)