Optimizing Referrals at a Free Community Specialty Care Clinic

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Clinical Communication
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Referrals to specialty care are common but often inefficient, causing clinician frustration.
• Structured referral templates can enhance clarity and completeness of information exchange.
• Optimizing multidisciplinary communication is crucial for effective patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To optimize multidisciplinary communication at a free specialty care clinic.
• To assess the impact of specialty-specific referral templates on provider satisfaction and adherence.
• To evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of a no-to-low-cost intervention.

Main Methods:

• Implemented specialty-specific referral templates for five specialties at a free clinic.
• Piloted templates at five primary care referral sites.
• Refined templates using the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) model.

Main Results:

• Templates improved satisfaction with overall referral processes.
• 100% of survey respondents reported satisfaction with the finalized templates.
• Template adoption was realistic and achievable, with referring providers expressing satisfaction.

Conclusions:

• Specialty-specific referral templates are an effective intervention for improving information exchange.
• This no-to-low-cost solution enhances communication between primary and specialty care.
• The intervention positively impacted provider and staff satisfaction and adherence.