Provider Profiling: Specialty Referral Patterns of Primary Care Providers at Dwight David Eisenhower Army Medical Center

Abstract

Abstract : Dwight David Eisenhower Army Medical Center (DDEAMC), Fort Gordon, Georgia, is the United States military's major referral center for the Southeast Region. The Southeast Regional Medical Command (SERMC) and Region 3 of the TRICARE Network consists of approximately 1.02 million beneficiaries in seven states. Facilities within the region have voiced concern about perceived difficulty of access to specialty referral appointments. The objective of this study was to utilize provider profiling as a tool in order to answer three primary questions. First, is the difficulty in obtaining referral appointments at DDEAMC real or perceived? Secondly, are the referral patterns of the providers a contribution factor in the region's perceived inability to meet the demand for specialty appointments? And third, if the providers' referral patterns are a contributing factor, which provider behaviors need to be modified? The variables studied were the number of: 1) internal referrals and total visits by Primary Care Provider. 2) internal referrals by specialty. 3) external referrals, by Military Treatment Facility (MTF). 4) external referrals by specialty. 5) network contract referrals, by specialty referred to, and the referring MTF.