Improving Communication Between Primary Care and Specialty Care Physicians

Every year, L.A. Care surveys Primary Care Physicians (PCPs) and Specialty Care Physicians (SCPs) about the quality of the clinical information they receive from one another.

The most recent survey results showed that PCPs and SCPs felt their communication with one another was lacking. Lack of information can lead to delays in services or duplicative testing for our members which may have a negative impact on a members’ care experience and health.

Based on the survey results, here are a few helpful tips for PCPs:

• Ensure all clinical documents for referral include the reason for the visit, pertinent examination findings, diagnosis or impressions, treatment details provided to the patient thus far, and specific details on what the PCP is requesting from the SCP, if applicable
   
• Send consultation notes to the SCP immediately after seeing the patient 
   
• Discuss with your patients the reason for the specialty care referral, urgency of the visit, timeframe to expect an appointment and steps to take if there are any further questions, for example if there is difficulty in scheduling an appointment
   
• Assign specific staff to monitor and track referrals and include in the staff’s responsibilities that they are a point of contact for the patient for questions and assistance

For more information, please email the L.A. Care Quality Improvement team.