Nurse Telephone Triage in Out-of-Hours GP Practice
Author Information
Author(s): Moll van Charante, Eric Peter, Gerben ter Riet, Sara Drost, Loes van der Linden, Niek S Klazinga, Patrick JE Bindels
Primary Institution: Academic Medical Centre, University of Amsterdam
Hypothesis
What determinants are associated with nurse telephone advice alone (NTAA) and subsequent return consultations to the GP?
Conclusion
There is significant inter-nurse variability in the provision of telephone advice, indicating differences in perception and skill among nurses.
Supporting Evidence
- The mean NTAA rate was 27.5%, with significant variation between nurses.
- Nurses were more likely to provide NTAA during night shifts.
- Return consultations were higher after nightly calls.
- Patients who received NTAA were less often referred to the hospital than those who contacted a GP.
Takeaway
Nurses help patients over the phone when they need medical advice, but how well they do this can vary a lot from one nurse to another.
Methodology
A two-week follow-up cohort study was conducted analyzing calls handled by nurses in a GP cooperative.
Potential Biases
Potential bias due to the limited number of nurse-related characteristics studied.
Limitations
The small number of nurses and the specific setting may limit the generalizability of the results.
Participant Demographics
The study involved 25 GPs and 8 nurses serving a population of 62,291 people.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p < 0.001
Confidence Interval
95% CI = -4.0 to -0.5
Statistical Significance
p < 0.001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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