040  Service evaluation of acute neurology referrals in the regional neuroscience centre. Issue 6 (27th May 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Grundmann, Alexander; Duddy, Martin; Anderson, Kirstie; Ng, Yi Shiau
• Is Part Of: Journal of neurology, neurosurgery and psychiatry. Volume 93:Issue 6(2022)
• Page Start: A113
• Page End: A113
• Publication Date: 2022-05-27
• Subjects: Neurology -- Periodicals; Nervous system -- Surgery -- Periodicals; Psychiatry -- Periodicals; 616.8
• DOI: 10.1136/jnnp-2022-ABN.365
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0022-3050

Abstract

Abstract : Background: Neurological disorders account for 20% of acute medical admissions and 7% of GP consulta- tions. We evaluated our acute neurology service with the catchment area of 3 million people. Moreover, we investigated the impact on the service during the COVID19 pandemic. Methods: We identified 6618 urgent phone calls logged between March 2017 and June 2020. We performed a detailed analysis of 800 referrals: 400 in 10 weeks before and 400 in 11 weeks during the first national lockdown. Results: Referrals were made by teaching hospitals (43%), district general hospitals (35%) and GPs (22%). The reasons for referrals were similar between hospitals and GPs: epilepsy (33% vs 30%), headache (15% vs 20%), sensory symptoms (10% vs 7%) and weakness (10% vs 8%). The outcomes of these referrals were telephone advice only (64%), neurology ward admission (9%), rapid assessment and other outpatient clinics (8% and 25% respectively). There was a threefold decrease in the number of phone calls during the initial four weeks of national lockdown. However, the patient demographics and the range of diagnoses remained overall unchanged. Conclusions: This provides important descriptive data on demographics and outcomes for acute neurology referrals, which can be used to guide service provision and training. alexander: [e-mail] 45