University of Minnesota/University of Puerto Rico: Practice Based Learning Collaborative: Continuity of Care Associated with Improved Health Care Outcomes

April 4, 2005

Continuity of Care Associated with Improved Health Care Outcomes

30 Mar 2005

While the discipline of family medicine has always been predicated on a core assumption that interpersonal continuity of care - the ongoing relationship between an individual doctor and patient - is important, individual studies measuring its impact on health care outcomes and cost have yielded conflicting results.

In a critical review that synthesizes the findings of 41 research studies, researchers found a significant association between interpersonal continuity and improved preventive care and lower rates of hospitalization.

Although even fewer studies addressing the association between continuity and cost exist, a review of 20 studies found an association between interpersonal continuity and lower cost variables.

Interpersonal Continuity of Care and Care Outcomes: A Critical Review
By John W. Saultz, M.D., et al