title: Self-referral to specialists--a dodgy proposition.
abstract: Patients are often ill-equipped to know which speciality to choose for their health problem. Especially in the presence of non-specific symptoms, choosing the right specialist might not be so obvious. In such cases, misdirected self-referrals by patients to self-chosen specialists can sometimes lead to misdiagnosis resulting in unwarranted delays in getting the right treatment. The general physicians, on the other hand, are in a unique position to oversee the big picture of patients' health, and are therefore better equipped to identify and sort out their individual health problems. Hence instead of a specialist if the first place of contact for patients is a general physician, they are likely to be guided along the right path of treatment for their various health problems. Such a system will minimize errors on the part of the patients by making certain that they are referred to the appropriate specialists.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Sitaram Bhartia Institute of Science and Research, New Delhi, India.
authors.forename: Ravinder P S
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Makkar
authors.forename: Amitabh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Monga
authors.forename: Anju
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Arora
authors.forename: Surabhi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mukhopadhyay
authors.forename: Ajay Kr
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Gupta
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005194:Family Practice / Q000592:standards*; D006291:Health Policy; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D008297:Male; D008511:Medicine / Q000592:standards; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D010358:Patient Participation; D026684:Personal Autonomy; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013038:Specialization