PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Pace, Christine A.
AU  - Gergen-Barnett, Katherine
AU  - Veidis, Alysa
AU  - D’Afflitti, Joanna
AU  - Worcester, Jason
AU  - Fernandez, Pedro
AU  - Lasser, Karen E.
TI  - Warm Handoffs and Attendance at Initial Integrated Behavioral Health Appointments
AID  - 10.1370/afm.2263
DP  - 2018 Jul 01
TA  - The Annals of Family Medicine
PG  - 346--348
VI  - 16
IP  - 4
4099  - http://www.annfammed.org/content/16/4/346.short
4100  - http://www.annfammed.org/content/16/4/346.full
SO  - Ann Fam Med2018 Jul 01; 16
AB  - Though integrated behavioral health programs often encourage primary care physicians to refer patients by means of a personal introduction (warm handoff), data are limited regarding the benefits of warm handoffs. We conducted a retrospective study of adult primary care patients referred to behavioral health clinicians in an urban, safety-net hospital to investigate the association between warm handoffs and attendance rates at subsequent initial behavioral health appointments. In multivariable analyses, patients referred via warm handoffs were not more likely to attend initial appointments (OR = 0.96; 95% CI, 0.79-1.18; P = .71). A prospective study is necessary to confirm the role of warm handoffs.