Back to Search
Start Over
Regional After-Hours Urgent Care Provided by a Tertiary Children's Hospital.
- Source :
-
Pediatrics . Dec2002 Part 1, Vol. 110 Issue 6, p1117. 8p. - Publication Year :
- 2002
-
Abstract
- Background. Ambulatory presentation to a tertiary pediatric emergency department (ED) is not convenient for many families. Yet many primary care pediatricians (PCPs) desire after-hours urgent care for their patients as an alternative to extended office hours or care by general emergency medicine providers at community hospitals. Objective. To describe a regional, community-based pediatric urgent care network (PUCN). Methods. The PUCN consists of 4 models: 1) pediatric emergency medicine faculty in a community hospital ED; 2) general pediatricians in a community hospital ED; 3) general pediatricians in a freestanding urgent care center; and 4) general pediatricians in a community hospital-based urgent care center. Physician staffing at all 4 sites is managed by our tertiary children's hospital. Billing records were reviewed and a questionnaire was mailed to 55 PCP practices in our metro area. Results. Year 2001 visits totaled 37 143. Minor trauma, ear complaints, and viral illnesses accounted for 70% of visits. Current Procedural Terminology codes for visits, reflecting complexity levels 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 were billed at the following frequency: 1%, 35%, 44%, 17% and 3%, respectively. A total of 2.2% of visits required admission or transfer. Mean collection rates ranged from 37% to 68% across the 4 sites. Break-even average hourly patient volumes ranged from 1.1 (site 4) to 1.9 (sites 1 and 3). A total of 110 PCPs, representing all 55 practices, responded to the questionnaire: 81% reported their patients used the PUCN often, 85% felt that communication between the PUCN and their practice was good, and 99% reported overall satisfaction with the network. Conclusions. The PUCN effectively addresses the needs of regional PCPs; however, the cost-effectiveness of such a program depends on billing practices, local collection rates, and site-specific staffing patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *PEDIATRIC emergency services
*PRIMARY care
*PEDIATRICS
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 00314005
- Volume :
- 110
- Issue :
- 6
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Pediatrics
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 8592521
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.110.6.1117