TY - JOUR T1 - Warm Handoffs and Attendance at Initial Integrated Behavioral Health Appointments JF - The Annals of Family Medicine JO - Ann Fam Med SP - 346 LP - 348 DO - 10.1370/afm.2263 VL - 16 IS - 4 AU - Christine A. Pace AU - Katherine Gergen-Barnett AU - Alysa Veidis AU - Joanna D’Afflitti AU - Jason Worcester AU - Pedro Fernandez AU - Karen E. Lasser Y1 - 2018/07/01 UR - http://www.annfammed.org/content/16/4/346.abstract N2 - 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. ER -