title: Outpatients. A pretty little sum.
abstract: Achieving the government's target of a maximum wait of 13 weeks for a first outpatient appointment requires a greater appreciation of randomness in the GP referral rate and non-attendance rate. It is possible to analyse what effect randomness will have on waiting times. The number of GP referrals received in December is a critical factor in determining end-of-year performance in meeting the 13-week target.
authors.affiliation: West Berkshire Priority Care Trust.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Jones
mesh_terms: D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001071:Appointments and Schedules; D017598:Efficiency, Organizational; D005194:Family Practice / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013222:State Medicine / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006113:United Kingdom; D014850:Waiting Lists