A care substitution service in the Netherlands: impact on referral, cost, and patient satisfaction

ABSTRACT:

Background

In care substitution services, medical specialists offer brief consultations to provide general practitioners (GPs) with advice on diagnosis, treatment, or hospital referral. When GPs serve as gatekeepers to secondary care, these regional services could reduce pressures on healthcare systems. The aim is to determine the impact of implementing a care substitution service for dermatology, orthopaedics, and cardiology on the hospital referral rate, health care costs, and patient satisfaction.

Methods

A before-after study was used to evaluate hospital referral rates and health care costs during a follow-up period of 1 year. The study population comprised patients with eligible International Classification of Primary Care codes for referral to the care substitution

SUBMITTER: Albada T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10472548 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature