Hong Kong Med J 2007;13(Suppl 4):S37-40
Does waiting time for specialist out- patient appointments affect clinic attendance and doctor shopping in Hong Kong?
JM Johnston, GM Leung, SM McGhee, S Castan-Cameo
Department of Community Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, 5/F William MW
Mong Block, Faculty of Medicine Building,
21 Sassoon Road, Pokfulam, Hong Kong
SAR, China
1. Doctor shopping remains the most important effect of long waiting times for specialist outpatient appointments. Further research is needed to identify effective strategies to change this behaviour.
2. Improved triage and referral systems are needed to ensure that patients are directed to the appropriate level of care.
3. Pilot studies are needed to test the effectiveness of strategies designed to change or moderate patient attendance behaviour.
2. Improved triage and referral systems are needed to ensure that patients are directed to the appropriate level of care.
3. Pilot studies are needed to test the effectiveness of strategies designed to change or moderate patient attendance behaviour.