Management of Patients at Primary Care Who Admit to a Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery Department Outpatient Clinic -

Abstract

Aims: Majority of the health problems that family physicians are encountered are associated with otorhinolaryngology (ORL) diseases. It was aimed in this study to determine how many of the patients who admitted to ORL out-patients clinics at a training and research hospital, the attitudes of patients about ths issue and thoughts about family medicine practice. Materials and Methods: A total of 300 patients who were attended to Kecioren Training and Research Hospital Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery out patient clinics between April-May 2016, were included in the study and socio-demographic and clinic characteristics, compliant s of referrral, referral to family physician for the same complaints, using and satisfaction from family physician, diagnosis after the examination of ORL specialist of the patients were recorded. Results: Mean age of patients was 49,04±16,17 years, 64,0% of them were female, 36,0% were male. Most common admission complaints were sore throat (%24.1), otalgia (%13.3), voice in the ear (13,0%), hear loss (12,3%) and nasal/postnasal drainage (10,3%), most common diagnoses were impact serumen (16,7%), acute pharyngitis (10,0%), tinnitus (8,3%), benign paroxysmal vertigo (7,7%) and acute otitis media (7,02%), respectively. 70,7% of the patients noticed that they hadn’t admitted to their family physician for these complaint,. 18% of them were admitted ORL outpatient clinic with the advise of family physician, 62,3% of them do not admit to their family doctors in the presence of any health problem Admission rates to primary care were higher in maried patients than those unmarried (p