What do we know about demand, use and outcomes in primary care out-of-hours services? A systematic scoping review of international literature.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To synthesise international evidence for demand, use and outcomes of primary care out-of-hours health services (OOHS).

Design

Systematic scoping review.

Data sources

CINAHL; Medline; PsyARTICLES; PsycINFO; SocINDEX; and Embase from 1995 to 2019.

Study selection

English language studies in UK or similar international settings, focused on services in or directly impacting primary care.

Results

105 studies included: 54% from mainland Europe/Republic of Ireland; 37% from UK. Most focused on general practitioner-led out-of-hours cooperatives. Evidence for increasing patient demand over time was weak due to data heterogeneity, infrequent reporting of population denominators and little adjustment for population sociodemographics. There was consistent

SUBMITTER: Foster H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7045150 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature