[Factors that influence interdepartmental referrals between Surgical Departments and Internal Medicine]
Eduardo Montero Ruiz1, Laura Pérez Sánchez, Cristina Gómez Ayerbe
1Servicio de Medicina Interna, Hospital Universitario Príncipe de Asturias, Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, España. emontero.hupa@salud.madrid.org
Introduction:
To analyse the long term outcome of the age and comorbidity of patients admitted to Surgical Departments, the number of referrals to Internal Medicine made by these Departments, and to assess whether there are seasonal variations and the call/reject effect.
Material And Methods:
We compared the age, Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI), and the number of referrals made by Traumatology, General Surgery and Urology of patients discharged in 2000, with those discharged in 2007. Seasonal variations and the call/reject effect were studied by analysing all the interdepartmental referrals made by all the surgical departments from the year 2000 to 2007.
Results:
Age increased by 5.6% between 2000 and 2007, the CCI by 5.8%, and interdepartmental referrals by 60%. Interdepartmental referrals decreased in July and August, whilst they increased in January, February, June and October, up to 64% more in January, although with variations of almost 50% in the same month. We detected differences of up to 68.2% in the referrals requested to different physicians.
Conclusions:
We observed a sharp increase in the requests for referral to Internal Medicine by Surgical Departments of our hospital, which is not explained by the increase in admissions to these Departments, and which could be associated with the increase in age and comorbidity of their patients. Requests for interdepartmental referral have marked monthly variations and also as regards the Consulting Physician.
Related Concept Videos
01:14SBAR II: Application of SBAR
SBAR Report from a Nurse to a Health Care Provider
S: "Hello, Dr. Smith. This is Jane, RN, from the Med Surg unit. I am calling to tell you about Ms. White in Room 210, who is experiencing increased pain and redness at her incision site. Her recent...
01:18Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-II
Physical Therapist
A physical therapist (PT) aims to restore function or prevent additional impairment in a patient following an injury or disease. Massage, heat, cold, water, sonar waves, exercises, and electrical stimulation are some treatments used by PTs to treat...
01:21Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-I
Physicians
The physician's primary responsibility is to diagnose illness and direct the medical or surgical treatment of the condition. The authority to admit patients to a healthcare agency or institution and practice care within that setting is granted to physicians by the healthcare agency or institution itself.
01:21Barriers to Effective Communication II
Cultural barriers:
Differences in values, beliefs, religion, knowledge, and tradition can significantly impact communication. Awareness of nonverbal cues is critical, especially when conversing with a patient from a different culture. What appears appropriate in one culture may be inappropriate in another.
Semantic barriers:
As a result of their tendency to use...
01:19Factors Affecting Drug Distribution: Miscellaneous Factors
Age plays a significant role due to differences in body composition among different age groups. Infants, for instance, have a higher proportion of total body water and lower albumin levels, a protein that binds drugs in the bloodstream. This unique composition in infants enhances the...
01:29SBAR I: Understanding the Concept
Standardized methods of communication have been developed to ensure that information is...