September 29, 2025Open Access

Trends and inequalities in Advice and Guidance versus direct referral in NHS primary care

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

Authors

Discussion

Observational study examines trends in advice and guidance versus direct referrals, highlighting disparities in population groups.

Advice and guidance use increased substantially from 0.10% to 1.97% between 2015 and 2023, notably during the COVID-19 pandemic.
About 671,894 patients had advice and guidance recorded, while 9.7 million had a direct referral during the same time frame.
Older, white, and less deprived individuals predominantly utilized advice and guidance, raising concerns about equity.
The rise in advice and guidance has not replaced direct referrals; instead, direct referrals often precede advice and guidance.

Mason et al. (2025) studied this question.

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

September 29, 2025Open Access

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark

Authors

Observational study examines trends in advice and guidance versus direct referrals, highlighting disparities in population groups.

Advice and guidance use increased substantially from 0.10% to 1.97% between 2015 and 2023, notably during the COVID-19 pandemic.
About 671,894 patients had advice and guidance recorded, while 9.7 million had a direct referral during the same time frame.
Older, white, and less deprived individuals predominantly utilized advice and guidance, raising concerns about equity.
The rise in advice and guidance has not replaced direct referrals; instead, direct referrals often precede advice and guidance.

Mason et al. (2025) studied this question.

View Full Paper

Ask AI

Bookmark