Characteristics of patients with frequent contact with general practice: a retrospective study

Background: Frequent attenders (>11 annual contacts) use more resources than most other patients in general practice. Aim: To study what characterises frequent attenders in relation to age, sex, mode of contact (face to face, email, or phone), and patient contact (GP or GP staff). Design & setting: A retrospective analysis of Danish patient datasets in general practice. Method: We used patient data from 11 Danish GP clinics and 38 874 patients covering a 12-month period. Bivariate as well as regression analyses of patient data were used. Results: Frequent attenders exist in all age groups, but with different frequencies. In the age group 55–64 years, 25% of patients were frequent attenders, this increased to 33% in the next age decade from age 65–74 years and reached 48% among those aged ≥75 years. Frequent attenders have a different user pattern related to physical visits, phone consultations, or email consultations than other patients. In their contact to the GP clinic, the frequent attender is relatively more often in contact with the practice staff than a GP compared with other patients. Conclusion: Within our Danish patient population, 22% had >11 annual contacts to their GP clinic. These frequent attenders are in general terms characterised by being female, aged >65 years, having 20 annual contacts to the GP clinic, and having ≥10 diagnoses. For the entire patient population, the GP handles 36% of the patient contacts (64% by other staff members), and this percentage is lowest among frequent attenders. Email contact is used more often among frequent attenders than other patients.