[Epicrisis. A report from the county of Copenhagen]

During a random week in 1987, 35% of the general practitioners from all of the municipalities in the County of Copenhagen participated in a questionnaire survey whose objective was to illuminate the quality, expedition time, and possible problems associated with the letter of discharge (LD), an important link between the primary and secondary medical services. It can be concluded that the expedition time for a large number of LD's from the hospitals of Copenhagen County is unacceptably lengthy. A surprisingly large number of patients visited their own general practitioner during the week following discharge with questions about the information which had been given them during their hospital stay, regardless of agreements for ambulatory monitoring at the department from which they had been discharged. A preliminary LD can, to a certain extent, alleviate the problems brought about by the lack af an LD but ought not to replace or delay the issuance of the actual LD, and is a more expensive solution. The quality and content of the LD can be evaluated generally as good, but could be improved if the recommended follow-up treatment and information to the patients and relatives is routinely carried out.