Hong Kong Med J 2007;13(Suppl 4):S28-31
Utilisation of accident and emergency services by patients who could be managed by general practitioners
A Lee, FL Lau, CB Hazlett, CW Kam, P Wong, TW Wong, S Chow
Department of Community and Family, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, NT, Hong Kong SAR, China
 
 
1. The reasons for high utilisation rates of accident and emergency (A&E) department services are complex and reflect problems of service delivery by general practitioners (GPs).
2. A network of GPs providing outof-hours services would reduce the unnecessary use of A&E services.
3. Better interfacing between primary and secondary care and between the public and private sectors would facilitate patients being referred back to and effectively cared for by GPs.