Emergency Admissions

Fascinating article this, suggesting that “patients who see the GP of their choice at their doctor’s surgery are less likely to go to hospital as an emergency admission.”

The study, led by the University of Leicester, found seeing your “preferred GP” helped reduce emergency hospital admissions. Led by Dr John Bankart, a research fellow in medical statistics at the University, the study was funded by the NHS and is published in Emergency Medical Journal.

“The findings, by researchers in the university’s Department of Health Sciences, showed a correlation between patients being able to see a preferred GP and emergency hospital admissions.”

The study was undertaken in two primary care trusts, Leicester City and Leicestershire County and Rutland, and included 145 general practices.

What are the policy implications of this for rural communities where there is a smaller choice of GPs?  It would be interesting to look at the rural/urban split in terms of the findings in Leicestershire and Rutland where a significant proportion of the population live in rural settings.