Discrepancies between the assessed urgency and the actual time taken to obtain a consultation with an internist
Sammanfattning
The objective was to compare postreferral waiting times to hospital in internal medicine with the urgency of the cases as assessed by a panel of doctors. Retrospective evaluation of referrals to three hospitals during 1 week was performed. Mean delay to specialist consultation was 36 days. There were no significant differences between the assessors in their opinions regarding the degree of urgency of referrals. Interobserver agreement between assessors was moderate or substantial and intraobserver agreement varied from moderate to almost perfect. It is possible to reliably assess the urgency of referrals to internal medicine departments. There is a need to improve the referral process for patients requiring consultation with a hospital specialist within 30 days.