Referral processes and wait times in primary care.

Area of Science:

• Medical practice management
• Healthcare access and delivery

Background:

• Family physicians (FPs) frequently require specialist consultations for patient care.
• Understanding referral response and appointment wait times is crucial for efficient healthcare delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the response times to consultation requests from FPs.
• To determine patient appointment wait times with non-FP specialists.

Main Methods:

• A survey was conducted among active physicians in family medicine practices in Hamilton, Ontario.
• Data on non-FP specialist consultation requests were collected over a 2-week period in 2014.

Main Results:

• 36.4% of consultation requests received no response from specialists.
• The mean wait time for a patient appointment was 60.1 days, with some specialties exceeding 168 days.
• Dermatology, surgery, gastroenterology, orthopedics, and obstetrics/gynecology were the most frequently requested specialties.

Conclusions:

• A significant nonresponse rate (36.4%) persists for specialist consultations, even after 5-7 weeks.
• Lengthy wait times and lack of acknowledgment increase physician and patient frustration.
• Community wait times exceed national benchmarks, indicating a need for improved referral processes.