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The doctor's deputizing service in a single-handed practice
The Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners
|September 1, 1982
Summary
Using a doctor's deputizing service for out-of-hours calls did not increase call rates compared to general practitioners handling their own calls. Patient demographics, particularly age and sex, significantly influenced service usage patterns.
Area of Science:
- General Practice
- Healthcare Management
Background:
- Out-of-hours (OOH) care is a critical component of primary healthcare delivery.
- The use of deputizing services for OOH calls is a common practice in many healthcare systems.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the call rates and usage patterns of a doctor's deputizing service used by a single-handed general practitioner.
- To compare OOH call rates with those of general practitioners managing their own OOH workload.
Main Methods:
- A retrospective study of out-of-hours calls received by a deputizing service over one year.
- Analysis of call data in relation to patient demographics (age, sex) and time of day.
Main Results:
- Overall call rate was 66.3 per 1,000 patients/year; night call rate was 10 per 1,000 patients/year.
- Children under five and women were the primary users of the service.
- Service utilization was lowest between 23:00 and 07:00.
Conclusions:
- Employing a deputizing service does not inherently increase OOH call frequency.
- Practice list demographics (age/sex) are key determinants of OOH call rates.
- The period between 23:00 and 07:00 represents the most cost-effective time for deputizing service engagement.