Table 1 Local context and services of individual trials.
From: Impact of telephone triage on emergency after hours GP Medicare usage: a time-series analysis
Trial | Catchment Areas *† | Frequency of telephone calls to service (calls/month/10,000 head of population) [1] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
1. Statewide Call Centre | Capital city, small rural centre and Other rural area 1.42M (Observation period for trial Feb99–Jan00 and Feb00–Dec00). Rest of state – small rural centre and other rural area studied 42,500 (Observation period for trial July00–Dec00) | 50 (Metropolitan) Data not available (Non-metropolitan) | 1 Operator with prior international industry experience under contract to the State Government) – phase-in period when calls to a public hospitals were transferred to the call centre 2 Free to caller 3 Coincidentally, a number of capital city after hours walk-in GP clinics opened around the time the Statewide Call Centre was established. |
2. Regional Call Centre | Capital city (inner region) 537,000 Non-metropolitan satellite: Small rural centre 21,000 (Observation period for trial May00–Dec 00) | 18 (Metropolitan) 6 (Non-metropolitan) | 1 Startup operator – phase-in period when calls to two public hospitals were transferred to the call centre 2 Free to caller 3 A GP after hours walk-in clinic operating with no fee to patients located adjacent to the ED of a regional hospital in the central metropolitan area operating for part of the study period but closed due to lack of demand. 4 Prior restricted access to after hours GP care in non-metropolitan satellite |
3. Deputising Service | Capital city and Other rural area 229,000 (Observation period for trial – October 1999 to September 2000) | 31 (approx) | 1 GP-based telephone triage and advice service 2 Pre-existing and continuing Deputising Service offering an after hours walk-in clinic and home visiting service. 3 Service offered to patients of previously enrolled GP practices (85% of all practices in capital city) and new enrolled GP practices beyond the metropolitan area (52% practice take-up). 4 Commonwealth government funding of the program derived from 'cashing out' historical MBS reimbursements to the service – home visits by Deputising Service staff to patients in capital city (only) during the trial not billed to patient. |
4. Local Triage and advice service | Other rural area (ie small country town and surrounding community) 21,000 (Observation period for trial – October 1999 to September 2000) | 24 (approx) | 1 Hospital nurses using locally developed paper-based protocols 2 Located in a local hospital in a rural community. 3 Aim to support GP own-practice after hours arrangement to relieve GP after hours burden. |