Improving Follow-Up for ED Patients Who Lack Access to Primary Care

Urgent follow-up is an important component of effective emergency care, yet many patients lack access to adequate follow-up care. In an interventional trial at a single emergency department in San Diego, an Internet-based system was implemented that allowed emergency physicians to electronically book appointments at three community clinics before discharging patients who required follow-up within 2 weeks, lived in a specified low-income area, and had no access to primary care. As part of their discharge instructions, patients were given the date, time, and location of the follow-up appointment, as well as a map and directions for using public transportation. Before this system was implemented, discharged patients were given a written referr…