Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29262771›Full record

SynthesisBMC family practice2017

Frequent attenders in late life in primary care: a systematic review of European studies.

Franziska D Welzel, Janine Stein, André Hajek, Hans-Helmut König, Steffi G Riedel-Heller

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMC family practice, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 34 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
34citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

34 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  14. Caring for high-need patients.BMC health services research · 2023
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Franziska D WelzelInstitute of Social Medicine, Occupational Health and Public Health, Medical Faculty, University of Leipzig, Philipp-Rosenthal-Straße 55, 04103, Leipzig, Germany. Franziska.Welzel@medizin.uni-leipzig.de.
Janine SteinInstitute of Social Medicine, Occupational Health and Public Health, Medical Faculty, University of Leipzig, Philipp-Rosenthal-Straße 55, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.
André HajekDepartment of Health Economics and Health Services Research, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Hans-Helmut KönigDepartment of Health Economics and Health Services Research, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Steffi G Riedel-HellerInstitute of Social Medicine, Occupational Health and Public Health, Medical Faculty, University of Leipzig, Philipp-Rosenthal-Straße 55, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHigh utilization of health care services is a costly phenomenon commonly observed in primary care practices. However, while frequent attendance in primary care has been broadly studied across age groups, aspects of high utilization by elderly patients have not been investigated in detail. The aim of this paper is to provide a systematic review of frequent attendance in primary care among elderly people.

methodsWe searched five databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, PubPsych, and Cochrane Library) for published papers addressing frequent attendance in primary health care among elderly individuals. Quality of studies was assessed using established criteria for evaluating methodological quality.

resultsTen studies met inclusion criteria and were included for detailed analysis. The average number of patients frequently utilizing primary care services varied across studies from 10% to 33% of the elderly samples and subsamples. The definition of frequent attendance across studies differed substantially. The most consistent associations between frequent attendance and old age were found for presence and severity of physical illness. Results on mental disorders and frequent attendance were heterogeneous. Only a few studies have assessed frequent attendance in association with factors such as drug use, social support or sociodemographic aspects; however results were inconsistent.

conclusionsSevere ill health and the need for treatment serve as the main drivers of frequent attendance in older adults. As results were scarce and divergent, future studies are needed to provide more information on this topic. Since prior studies have offered only a snapshot of this service use behaviour, a longitudinal approach would be preferable in the future.

Indexed as

Health StatusPatient AcuityAgedAged, 80 and overAge FactorsEuropeHumansMental HealthPolypharmacyPrimary Health CareSex FactorsSocial SupportElderlyFrequent attendanceGeneral practicePrimary care

Identifiers

PMID29262771
PMCPMC5738881

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

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.