When are patients willing to wait to see their own PCP?

Patients value relationship with PCP

The role of the PCP in the clinical journey is an important one, the survey-based study revealed. Nearly every patient agreed that a long-term relationship with a PCP is important for good clinical outcomes, with almost all of the 2,300 survey respondents saying that they have a PCP as a usual source of care. Another 71% said it's extremely important to have a personal PCP, and 24% agreed it's somewhat important.

But the reality of the current medical landscape is that not every patient will see their PCP for every health need. A push for more efficiency in the system has been met by the insurgence of urgent care centers, while team-based care has introduced new players who might see patients in the clinic or office.

Those new care access options, plus increasing appointment wait times with PCPs, have raised questions about when patients want to see their doctors and when they'd prefer to visit with another healthcare professional sooner.

According to the survey, it depends.

When do patients prefer visits with their doctor?

Generally speaking, patients are comfortable visiting with another member of the care team, such as a physician assistant/associate or nurse practitioner, when they have lower acuity or more time-sensitive symptoms.

For example, 93% of respondents experiencing an urgent concern said they'd like to see their PCP but are willing to visit with the clinician who can see them the soonest. Another 83% of those experiencing a new symptom said the same.

More specifically, 93% of respondents with a sore throat said they'd rather see the next available provider within a day or two than wait three to four weeks for their PCP. Two-thirds experiencing bodily pain gave a similar answer.

Patients are much more willing to wait to visit with their doctor when they are potentially facing a more sensitive examination or diagnosis.

"Our data demonstrate that most patients are willing to wait 3­–4 weeks to see their own PCP for certain types of visits, underscoring the importance of seeing someone they trust over the convenience of being seen more quickly," the researchers reported.

For example, 68% of respondents said they'd be willing to wait between 3 and 4 weeks to visit with their PCP if they had an issue that required a sensitive exam. Another 59% preferred to visit their PCP for a new mental health condition, while 61% said the same about a new issue with a chronic condition.

About half of the patients preferred to see their PCPs for more comprehensive exams, such as their yearly physical, follow-up care for a chronic condition or follow-up for a mental health condition.

Some populations were more likely than others to prefer meeting with their usual source of care. For example, older adults and female patients preferred seeing their PCP for their annual check-ups. People in poorer health were similarly more likely to prefer their PCP for chronic disease follow-ups.

Digital appointment scheduling allows for flexibility

These findings make the case for greater patient empowerment in the appointment scheduling process, particularly in terms of health IT utilization and adoption, the researchers said.

"Direct patient scheduling through use of online patient portals has the potential to provide patients with more autonomy on how, and when, they would like to be seen for specific reasons, including how long they would be willing to wait to see their own PCP," they explained.

Expanding direct patient scheduling through the patient portal and other digital channels could help them navigate their care access preferences, which the researchers said could improve the patient experience.

"Direct scheduling and the use of patient portals for asynchronous care has the potential to improve patient satisfaction and continuity with one’s PCP, although more research is needed to evaluate the impacts of direct scheduling and the patient portal for primary care practices and the patients they serve," they concluded.

Sara Heath has reported news related to patient engagement and health equity since 2015.