ReviewAnnals of family medicine
Interpersonal continuity of care and patient satisfaction: a critical review.
Review in Annals of family medicine. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 217 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
217 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Midwife continuity of care models versus other models of care for childbearing women.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2024Pooled it
- The impact of remote care approaches on continuity in primary care: a mixed-studies systematic review.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2023Pooled it
- Facilitators and inhibitors in hospital-to-home transitional care for elderly patients with chronic diseases: A meta-synthesis of qualitative studies.Frontiers in public health · 2023Pooled it
- Midwife-led continuity models versus other models of care for childbearing women.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2016Pooled it
- What are the roles involved in establishing and maintaining informational continuity of care within family practice? A systematic review.BMC family practice · 2008Pooled it
- The nature of informational continuity of care in general practice.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2008Pooled it
- Language Disparities in Caregiver Satisfaction with Physician Communication at Well Visits from 0-2 Years.Academic pediatrics · 2024Trial
- Optimising personal continuity for older patients in general practice: a cluster randomised stepped wedge pragmatic trial.BMJ open · 2024Trial
- Continuity in different care modes and its relationship to quality of life: a randomised controlled trial in patients with COPD.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2012Trial
- Experiences of contacts with diabetes care professionals among people with type 2 diabetes in an urban Swedish setting.Scandinavian journal of primary health care · 2026Article
- Role and values of Swedish community hospitals through the eyes of general hospital doctors: a qualitative interview study.BMJ open · 2026Article
- Optimising personal continuity in general practice: process evaluation of a toolkit.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Article
- Patient-Reported Receipt of Satisfactory Healthy Lifestyle Guidance and Associated Factors Among Outpatients in China: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Survey.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- AI in Psychiatry for Improving Continuity of Patient Care: Protocol for a Mixed Methods Systematic Review.JMIR research protocols · 2026Article
- Assigned But Not Anchored: A Study of Primary Care Provider Utilization Among Covered California Enrollees.Journal of general internal medicine · 2026Article
- Association of General Practice Continuity With Hospital Admissions and Costs: A Retrospective Study.Annals of family medicine · 2026Article
- A dyadic perspective on trust in physicians and quality of life in pediatric asthma: an actor-partner interdependence model on children and their parents.Journal of pediatric psychology · 2026Article
- Continuity of Care in General Practice in Australia: A Whole-Of-Population Serial Cross-Sectional Study.The Medical journal of Australia · 2026Article
- Positive and negative experiences and emotions of older patients before, during and after hospital admission: patient journey mapping.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Article
157 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeWe wanted to review the medical literature regarding the relationship between interpersonal continuity of care and patient satisfaction and suggest future strategies for research on this topic.
methodsA search of the MEDLINE database from 1966 through April 2002 was conducted to find articles focusing on interpersonal continuity of patient care. The resulting articles were screened to select those focusing on the relationship between interpersonal continuity in the doctor-patient relationship and patient satisfaction. These articles were systematically reviewed and analyzed for study method, measurement technique, and the quality of evidence.
resultsThirty articles were found that addressed the relationship between interpersonal continuity and patient satisfaction with medical care. Twenty-two of these articles were reports of original research. Nineteen of the 22, including 4 clinical trials, reported significantly higher satisfaction when interpersonal continuity was present.
conclusionsAlthough the available literature reflects persistent methodologic problems, a consistent and significant positive relationship exists between interpersonal continuity of care and patient satisfaction. Future research in this area should address whether the same is true for all patients or only for those who seek ongoing relationships with physicians in primary care.
Indexed as
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.