THE LIST SYSTEM CAN REDUCE THE WAITING TIME AND NUMBER OF CONSULTATIONS IN A CENTRALIZED PRIMARY-CARE CENTER THAT PROVIDES OUT-OF-HOURS MEDICAL-CARE

Objective - To study the waiting time and number of consultations of t he patients who required out of hours medical care from a centralized primary care centre before and after the introduction of a list system . Design - Non-controlled intervention study. A questionnaire, complet ed by receptionists, concerning all out of hours general practice cons ultations for one week each month during two separate years (in 1990 w ith no list system and in 1993 with list system in operation). Setting - One health centre in central Finland in a region with 39 495 inhabi tants. Subjects - All patients contacting the health centre to request medical help during out of hours work. Outcome measures - Consultatio n rates by age and sex of the patients and their waiting time before s eeing the GP. Results - Zn 1990, the average out of hours consultation rate per 1000 inhabitants per year was 826 for women and 819 for men. These figures were reduced by 271 for women (95% CI 262-280) and 305 for men (95% CI 297-314) in 1993. The mean waiting time was 55 min in 1990 and 32 min in 1993 (p<0.001). Conclusion - The introduction of a list system leads to more effective primary care services.