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Practice Commentary
Rob Scott Thompson, DO, MS
Arch Fam Med. 1995;4(7):599.
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| Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings. |
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Physicians generally know who the "high-maintenance" patients are in their practices. Some are truly unhealthier than average; others seek care for relatively minor, self-limiting complaints.
This survey attempted to quantify the differences between frequent and infrequent users' intentions to seek care. The goal is to improve utilization by teaching inappropriately frequent users when it is safe and appropriate to do their own watchful waiting.
The study sample size is small. Families were selected for their previously documented patterns of frequent and infrequent use, without attention to important confounding variables such as patient age, medical history, or socioeconomic status.
Therefore, even though I intuitively agree with the authors' conclusion that frequent users seek care earlier for minor symptoms, their survey does not prove this point.
. . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]
Author Affiliations
United Health Services Johnson City, NY
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