Health Care Utilization After a Visit to a Within-Group Family Physician vs a Walk-In Clinic Physician

PLAIN-LANGUAGE ARTICLE SUMMARY AND VISUAL ABSTRACT

Original Research

Within-Group Physician Visits Reduce Emergency Department Use Compared to Out-of-Group Walk-In Clinic Visits 

Background and Goal: Timely access to primary care is essential, but many patients face difficulties booking same-day or next-day appointments with their regular family physician. Walk-in clinics offer a solution by providing care without an appointment, but they often disrupt continuity of care. This study aimed to compare the outcomes of patients who visited a physician from their own family physician group during after-hours versus those who visited an out-of-group walk-in clinic physician.

Study Approach: This retrospective study used claims data from Ontario, Canada to compare patients who visited a physician within their family physician group for after-hours care with those who visited out-of-group walk-in clinics. Researchers examined emergency department visits within seven days of these appointments and other outcomes like follow-up visits with their regular physician. Patients in each group were matched to ensure comparable characteristics for analysis.

Main Results: The study identified 607,166 individuals who had their visit with a within-group physician during after-hours or on weekends, and 1,094,215 individuals who had their visit with an out-of-group walk-in clinic physician they were not enrolled to. After matching, there were 506,033 individuals in each group.

• Patients who saw a within-group family physician after hours were 10% less likely to visit the emergency department within seven days compared to those who saw an out-of-group walk-in clinic physician.

• This difference was most evident in patients living in large urban areas and among children and adolescents.

• Those who saw a physician within their group were more likely to follow-up with their own family physician or another doctor from their group in the following week.

Why It Matters:The findings suggest that maintaining continuity of care, even for after-hours visits, can reduce unnecessary emergency department visits. Ensuring patients can access timely care with a physician within their own family physician group may help improve patient outcomes and reduce health care costs by decreasing emergency department usage.

Health Care Utilization After a Visit to a Within-Group Family Physician vs a Walk- In Clinic Physician

Lauren Lapointe-Shaw, MD, PhD, et al  

 Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Women's College Institute for Health System Solutions and Virtual Care, Women's College Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, University Health Network and Sinai Health System, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Visual Abstract