| Autor: |
Ijzermans, C. J., Mentink, S., Klaphake, L. M. M., van Grieken, J. J. M., Bindels, P. J. E. |
| Přispěvatelé: |
Other departments, Emergency Department |
| Jazyk: |
Dutch; Flemish |
| Rok vydání: |
2002 |
| Zdroj: |
Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde, 146(30), 1413-1417. Bohn Stafleu van Loghum |
| ISSN: |
0028-2162 |
| Popis: |
OBJECTIVE: To determine the differences between the problems presented out-of-hours to general practitioners (GPs) or to the Accident & Emergency (A&E) department of a hospital, and to assess whether the physicians believed the patient was justified in contacting them. DESIGN: Descriptive. METHOD: All the out-of-hours contacts that 33,000 patients on the lists of 22 general practices had with either a duty GP or the A&E department of a nearby hospital (so-called 'self-referrers') were counted during two 3-month periods. In addition, symptoms were classified in both settings using the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC). RESULTS: The ratio for contacts between general practice and A&E was 2:1 in the evening and 3:1 at night. The majority of problems presented to the GP was dealt with by telephone. At the A&E, trauma was seen most commonly, while GPs were contacted for infections and (complications of) chronic diseases. A&E physicians judged one out of five reasons for encounter as 'unjustified', while this ratio was one in seven in the case of GPs. CONCLUSIONS: There was only a partial overlap in the nature of the problems presented to an A&E department and those presented to GPs; instead, the two settings appeared to complement each other. The results were influenced by the fact that the A&E department lacked the possibility of dealing with patients by telephone. Both the A&E department and the GPs were contacted by patients who did not need (acute) medical care |
| Databáze: |
OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
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