An Insight into the Referal Letters received at Pulmonology unit of a Tertiary Care Hospital

Abstract

Background:Referrals letters are an integral part of multidisciplinaryapproach to health care. Problems with quality and content of the referralletters have been documented in literature. The objective of this study was tostudy the content of referral letters received at Pulmonology unit of a tertiarycare hospital.Materials and Methods:This was a prospective study of the referral lettersreceived at Pulmonology unit, Khyber teaching hospital Peshawar, from1 Feb2016 till 30 April 2016. Patient's clinical information (brief history and examination), specific reason for referral, and identity of referring doctor(name/designation) were considered minimum requirements of the referralletters. The data was recorded in a structured proforma, analyzed via SPSS-19and the results were presented as table or figures.Results:A total of 164 referral letters written on patient's charts were analyzed.Clinical history and examination was documented in 89.02% and17.07% respectively, while specific reason for referral was mentioned in 42%only. Main reasons for referral included diagnostic problem (4.89%), therapeutic(37%), anesthesia fitness (12%), take over (10%), and interventionsincluding pleural biopsy (5.4%), chest intubations (9.1%) and bronchoscopy(11.6%). Name of the referring doctor was missing in 87% of the letters.Conclusion: There is a need to develop a standardized referral letter withminimum essential information fields as the current referral practice needsimprovement