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[Emergency service consultations and the list patient system]
Bjørnar Nyen1, Morten Lindbaek
1Stiftelsen GRUK (Gruppe for kvalitetsutvikling i sosial- og helsetjenesten), Nedre Hjellegt. 1, 3724 Skien. bnyen@gruk.no
Background:
We wanted to analyse the frequency of list patient consultations in the off-hour emergency service in Skien.
Material And Methods:
Over one year, all emergency service consultations between 4 PM and 11 PM on workdays were registered according to the general practitioner (GP) patients used and divided by the number of patients on each list. We performed a multiple linear regression analysis with number of consultations adjusted for the total patient number on the list as the dependent variable.
Results:
We found great variation in the consultation rate among patients listed by various GPs. The consultation rate was significantly associated with the practice in which the GP worked. Quarterly feedback of the results to doctors did not change the consultation pattern.
Interpretation:
The use of the off-hour emergency service is associated with certain practice characteristics. We assume that the variation results from differences in accessibility by telephone, in the capacity for taking in patients needing urgent attention, and in varying degree of attention to service in the practices.