[Easing the patients' trajectories from private practice to hospital: One-year experiment of the RAPIDO project]

Abstract

Introduction: Internal medicine departments manage patients referred by emergency departments or private practitioners. Considering the overcrowding of emergency departments and lack of beds for inpatients, this specialty must be part of an "ambulatory shift", particularly by strengthening the links between community and hospital medicine. Our objective was to evaluate a new care pathway in internal medicine at Nîmes university hospital.

Methods: Our department has developed the RAPIDO project (Réseau d'Aide à la PrIse en Charge Diagnostique et d'Orientation). The referring general practitioner contacts a senior internist on a dedicated phone line. After careful evaluation, he may offer a consultation within 15 days. A summary report is then given to the patient.

Results: Between November 2020 and November 2021, 254 patients were seen via RAPIDO. The average call-consultation time period was 6.4 (±4.5) days, for symptoms lasting for 2 weeks to 3 months in 43% (n=109) of cases. The reason for the call was a suspicion of systemic disease in 28% of cases (n=84), or a dysfunction of an organ in 16%. A diagnosis was made in 89% of cases. The budget of the whole procedure was balanced.

Conclusion: A quick internal medicine consultation pathway for general practitioners seems to be a relevant, feasible and economically viable healthcare trajectory, which can be transposed to any type of healthcare institution, as soon as sufficient human resources are dedicated.

Keywords: Ambulatory care; Care pathways; General medicine; Internal Medicine; Médecine ambulatoire; Médecine générale; Médecine interne; Network healthcare; Parcours de soin; Réseau « ville-hôpital ».