Improving the Outpatient Referral Process With Electronic Communications

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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An electronic referral application will be developed and integrated into the existing outpatient information system. The primary goal of this software is to improve the quality and coordination of patient care by increasing physician-to-physician communication. The investigators anticipate that improved communications will also enhance physician and patient satisfaction and provide cost savings. These outcomes will be formally evaluated following implementation of the application.

Detailed Description
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A trial will be performed to test and quantify the benefits of electronic referrals. Primary care physicians (PCPs) from 2 community-based clinics will be recruited for enrollment. The control group will initiate referrals using the pre-existing paper forms; physician-to-physician communication can occur by e-mail, phone, or mail at the discretion of the referring physician as is currently the standard. Physicians randomized to the intervention arm will be asked to use the electronic application for every referral during the study period. For 6 months, every new referral initiated within the study groups will be assessed for the completeness of patient information and timing of feedback to the referring physician via physician surveys. In addition, a subgroup of patients in the control and intervention arms will be surveyed to assess the impact of the intervention on patient satisfaction with the referral process.

Official Title
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Improving the Outpatient Referral Process With Electronic Communications

Conditions
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Communication, Interprofessional Relations

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Electronic referral system


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Any referral initiated by a PCP at the study sites for a patient to go to a specialist for the first time Exclusion Criteria: Referrals for repeat specialist visits or referrals not initiated by a PCP

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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No

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Allocation: Non-Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Intervention/Treatment |
| --- |
|Behavioral: Electronic referral system|nan|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Percentage of referral requests with complete information |  |  | 
| Percentage of referrals with timely information exchanged |  |  | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Physician satisfaction |  |  | 
| Patient satisfaction |  |  | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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Referrals, Quality of care, Ambulatory care, Electronic medical record, Referral communication