NCT01470963

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to examine whether the implementation of a referral template will increase quality of health care delivered and the quality of health care co-operation. The investigators intent to implement a referral template, at the level of the general practitioner (GP), for the referral of patients within 4 separate diagnostic groups:

  • dyspepsia/upper GI symptoms
  • colonic cancer investigation/lower GI symptoms
  • chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
  • chest pain Local GP clinics will be randomised to use the referral template or to use standard referral practice. Using a predefined set of quality criteria the investigators will score the process of care in each patient, and compare intervention and control groups. In addition other criteria will be collected and compared between the two groups, e.g.
  • time to diagnosis/treatment
  • quality of referral
  • more appropriate referrals
  • patient satisfaction (as measured by a questionnaire) The investigators hypothesize that the implementation of a referral template will lead to a measurable increase in the quality of health care delivered.

Trial Health

87
On Track

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
500

participants targeted

Target at P75+ for not_applicable

Timeline
Completed

Started Sep 2011

Typical duration for not_applicable

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
completed

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

Study Start

First participant enrolled

September 1, 2011

Completed
4 days until next milestone

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

September 5, 2011

Completed
2 months until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

November 11, 2011

Completed
2.1 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

January 1, 2014

Completed
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

January 1, 2014

Completed
Last Updated

July 11, 2014

Status Verified

July 1, 2014

Enrollment Period

2.3 years

First QC Date

September 5, 2011

Last Update Submit

July 10, 2014

Conditions

ReferralQuality of Health Care

Keywords

ReferralQuality of Health Care

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

  • Collated quality indicator score

    Based on treatment guidelines and international quality assessment tools we have developed quality indicators score sets for each of the 4 diagnostic groups in the study. The scores will be compared between intervention and control GP offices to assess the effect of the referral template.

    The care period for each patient (approx. 3 weeks up to 1 year)

Secondary Outcomes (8)

  • Improved referral quality

    The care period for each patient (approx. 3 weeks up to 1 year)

  • Waiting time from referral to appointment

    The care period for each patient (approx. 3 weeks up to 1 year)

  • Time from referral to initiation of treatment

    The care period for each patient (approx. 3 weeks up to 1 year)

  • Percentage of patients seen within investigation deadline

    Assessed at end of study - approx 2 years

  • Number of patients designated with investigation deadline

    Assessed at end of study - approx 2 years

  • +3 more secondary outcomes

Study Arms (2)

Referral template

EXPERIMENTAL

Implementation of the referral templates at the GP office

Other: Implementation of referral template

Control

NO INTERVENTION

Normal referral pattern

Interventions

Implementation of referral templateOTHER

Implementation of referral template at the GP office

Referral template

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years+
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersYes
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • referral to medical department of University Hospital of North Norway, Harstad

You may not qualify if:

  • children (\< 18 years of age)
  • patients with reduced capacity to consent

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

Medical department - University Hospital of North Norway Harstad

Harstad, 9480, Norway

Location

Related Publications (4)

  • Wahlberg H, Valle PC, Malm S, Hovde O, Broderstad AR. The effect of referral templates on out-patient quality of care in a hospital setting: a cluster randomized controlled trial. BMC Health Serv Res. 2017 Mar 7;17(1):177. doi: 10.1186/s12913-017-2127-1.

    PMID: 28270128DERIVED

  • Wahlberg H, Braaten T, Broderstad AR. Impact of referral templates on patient experience of the referral and care process: a cluster randomised trial. BMJ Open. 2016 Oct 24;6(10):e011651. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011651.

    PMID: 27797992DERIVED

  • Wahlberg H, Valle PC, Malm S, Broderstad AR. Impact of referral templates on the quality of referrals from primary to secondary care: a cluster randomised trial. BMC Health Serv Res. 2015 Aug 29;15:353. doi: 10.1186/s12913-015-1017-7.

    PMID: 26318734DERIVED

  • Wahlberg H, Valle PC, Malm S, Broderstad AR. Practical health co-operation - the impact of a referral template on quality of care and health care co-operation: study protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial. Trials. 2013 Jan 7;14:7. doi: 10.1186/1745-6215-14-7.

    PMID: 23295103DERIVED

Study Officials

  • Ann Ragnhild Broderstad, Dr. med

    University Hospital of North Norway

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
NONE
Purpose
HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

September 5, 2011

First Posted

November 11, 2011

Study Start

September 1, 2011

Primary Completion

January 1, 2014

Study Completion

January 1, 2014

Last Updated

July 11, 2014

Record last verified: 2014-07

Locations

NO(1)