[Limited cognitive assessment in primary care: are GP referrals to the memory clinic always appropriate?]

To investigate whether referrals of general practitioners (GPs) to the memory clinic align with the regional and national dementia guidelines.

For this single center retrospective study, data was collected from electronic patient files.

GP referrals to the memory clinic over a 1-year period were categorized and evaluated according to the regional and national guidelines.

310 GP referrals were included with the most common referral motivations: "Additional somatic or psychiatric factors" (77; 24,8%) and "Straightforward dementia diagnosis" (70; 22,6%). A total of 51,0% of referrals were not in line with regional guidelines: either because of non-compliant referral reasons; or limited cognitive assessment without clinical findings and/or cognitive testing.

Half of GP referrals to the memory clinic were not in line with the national and regional guidelines. Referrals were often not preceded by clinical findings and/or cognitive testing. Aiming for effective care, cognitive assessments in primary care should be encouraged and with appropriate assistance.