Continuity of Care: Specialists and PCPs

Community Health Plan of Washington recently surveyed network providers. Network physicians, we learned, are concerned about the flow of timely information from specialists to referring physicians.

We know that providing high-quality clinical care is important for all providers. Timely communication with referring physicians is a critical component in continuity of care.

Specialists may want to see how long after the initial consultation a letter is sent to the referring physician. If letters are not going out within a week, it is an opportunity to review current practices for communicating with referring physicians, and then make changes as appropriate.

Primary care providers may want to work with the specialists who see their patients to make it easy for the specialists to send clinical information in a timely manner.