![Sample our Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing & Allied Health journals, sign in here to start your FREE access for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5944/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Medicine-Dentistry-Nursing-Allied-Health.jpg"})
Abstract
Objective - To examine the reasons for referral from general practice in Finland.
Design - Survey over one week of all referrals from general practice.
Setting - Central and northern Finland, comprising 72% of the area of the country and one-third of the population.
Participants - 851 general practitioners (GPs) from public health centres.
Outcome measures - Referrals by speciality and reasons for referrals by ICD-9 and ICPC codes in terms of characteristics of patients, GPs, and practices.
Results - A higher proportion of male (39%) than female (33%) patients were referred to surgical speciality (p<0.001).
Ten per cent of the patients referred by female GPs were referred to gynaecology departments, compared with 5% of those referred by male GPs (p<0.001). Otitis media in children and abdominal pain in adults were the commonest reasons for referral of both male and female patients.
Conclusion - Our results will be useful in developing the training of GPs with respect to those health problems that most commonly lead to a referral to hospital.
