Informational influences on physician referrals

Today's health care marketers are devoting significant resources to increase physician referrals, an area vital to their continued survival. The goal of this investigation was to integrate the findings of previous research on physician referrals, and to provide an up-to-date assessment of those influences underlying physician referral behavior. A questionnaire was mailed to 1,800 physicians differing in specialty and years in practice. Three informational influences were found to affect physician referrals: Program Information, Patient Input, and Location. The results suggest a need for specialists and other organizations interested in managing physician referrals to (a) establish and maintain a network of relationships among those physicians referring patients and specialists being referred to through personal communication, (b) maintain a pool of knowledgeable professionals willing to supply relevant and current information to physicians, and (c) provide complete and prompt feedback information to the referring physician. Managerial implications and directions for future research are also discussed.