Continuity in general practice as predictor of mortality, acute hospitalisation, and use of out-of-hours care: a registry-based observational study in Norway

The British journal of general practice: the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners

article

Hogne Sandvik¹  Øystein Hetlevik²  Jesper Blinkenberg³  Steinar Hunskaar⁴ 

[1] National Centre for Emergency Primary Health Care, NORCE Norwegian Research Centre;Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, University of Bergen;National Centre for Emergency Primary Health Care, NORCE Norwegian Research Centre, Bergen, Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, University of Bergen;NORCE Norwegian Research Centre, Bergen, Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care, University of Bergen

关键词: continuity of patient care;    emergency medical services;    family practice;    general practice;    hospitalisation;    mortality;    Norway;   

DOI  :  10.3399/BJGP.2021.0340

学科分类：卫生学

来源: Royal College of General Practitioners

【 摘 要 】

Background Continuity, usually considered a quality aspect of primary care, is under pressure in Norway, and elsewhere.Aim To analyse the association between longitudinal continuity with a named regular general practitioner (RGP) and use of out-of-hours (OOH) services, acute hospital admission, and mortality.Design and setting Registry-based observational study in Norway covering 4 552 978 Norwegians listed with their RGPs.Method15 years. Results are given as adjusted odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) resulting from multilevel logistic regression analyses.Results15 years.Conclusion Length of RGP–patient relationship is significantly associated with lower use of OOH services, fewer acute hospital admissions, and lower mortality. The presence of a dose–response relationship between continuity and these outcomes indicates that the associations are causal.

【 授权许可】

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