Closed: 7 October 2016
The RACGP is exploring a number of matters in relation to patient referrals to other medical specialists.
Previously, the RACGP developed Referring to other medical specialists: A guide for ensuring good referral outcomes for your patients for members. This guide addresses referrals from GPs to other medical specialists and covers:
- types of referrals and suggested wording
- the use of indefinite referrals
- good practice for referral content.
The guide is intended to improve professional relationships between GPs and other medical specialists. While it provides advice on referrals by GPs to specialists, it does not address how other medical specialists manage GP referrals.
Some of the issues currently being considered by the RACGP and identified in recent commentary include other medical specialists:
- asking for a new referral for a patient with the same ongoing problem every 12 months
- at times not acknowledging or responding to referrals from GPs
- at times not accepting indefinite or timed referrals from GPs other than 12 months
- inconsistently communicating with the referring GP about any referrals to other specialists.
In this consultation, the RACGP sought member feedback on these issues and any additional experiences relating to how other medical specialists’ have handled your referrals. Feedback will inform our advocacy on behalf of GPs on these issues.