At Inpatient Handovers to PCPs, Timing and Modes of Communication Are Key

Most primary care providers prefer communication at admission and prior to discharge; the discharge summary alone is insufficient.

Professional organizations recommend that primary care providers (PCPs) receive notification at each transition in their patients' care in the event of hospitalization, but mode of communication and frequency are unspecified. Investigators at one academic medical center surveyed >250 PCPs from >40 predominantly community practices, some affiliated with the medical center, and some unaffiliated (overall response rate, 26%).

Fewer than half of PCPs reported receiving real-time notification about their admitted patients at “almost every” hospitalization. No respondents believed discharge summaries alone were a sufficient means of communication from inpatient physicians to PCPs, and about two thirds preferred communication at admission and prior…

Reviewing Author

Daniel D. Dressler, MD, MSc, SFHM, FACP

Disclosures

RoyaltiesMcGraw-Hill; Elsevier

Editorial BoardsMedical Clinics of North America; Caribbean Medical Journal International Advisory Panel (2021–2026)

Daniel D. Dressler, MD, MSc, SFHM, FACP

Disclosures

RoyaltiesMcGraw-Hill; Elsevier

Editorial BoardsMedical Clinics of North America; Caribbean Medical Journal International Advisory Panel (2021–2026)

At Inpatient Handovers to PCPs, Timing and Modes of Communication Are Key

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Reviewing Author