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Public health
Research
Doctors admitted to a Physicians’ Health Program: a comparison of self-referrals versus directed referrals
  1. María Dolores Braquehais1,2,
  2. Sergi Valero2,
  3. Miquel Jordi Bel1,2,
  4. María Cecilia Navarro1,
  5. Josep Lluís Matalí1,
  6. Viviana Nasillo2,
  7. Jaume Padrós1,
  8. Antoni Arteman1,
  9. Eugeni Bruguera1,2,
  10. Miquel Casas1,2
  1. 1Integral Care Program for Sick Health Professionals, Galatea Clinic, Galatea Foundation, Col·legi Oficial de Metges de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
  2. 2Department of Psychiatry and Legal Medicine, Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron, CIBERSAM, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
  1. Correspondence to Dr María Dolores Braquehais; mdbraquehais{at}vhebron.net

Abstract

Objective To compare the profile of doctors with mental disorders admitted to a Physicians’ Health Program (PHP) depending on their type of referral.

Design Retrospective chart review.

Method We analysed 1545 medical records of doctors admitted to the Barcelona PHP (PAIMM) from 1 February 1998 to 31 December 2012.

Results Most doctors (83.2%) were self-referred to the programme. Patients non-self-referred were older (Embedded Image=55 vs Embedded Image=49.6 years; t=6.96, p<0.01) than those self-referred and there were more men (68.3%) than women (45.8%; OR=0.39; 95% CI 0.29 to 0.52). Self-referrals were more frequent among patients with non-addictive disorders (84.6% vs 15.4%; OR=4.52; 95% CI 3.23 to 28.45). Self-referred patients needed less inpatient admissions (16.8% vs30.9%; OR=2.22; 95% CI 1.63 to 3.01) and the length of their treatment episodes was shorter (Embedded Image=24.3 vs Embedded Image = 32.4 months; t=3.34; p<0.01). Logistic regression showed a significant model (χ2=67.52; df=3; p<0.001). Age, gender and diagnosis were statistically associated with type of referral to the programme.

Conclusions Type of referral to a PHP may be influenced not only by sick doctors’ personal traits but also by each programme's design and how it is perceived by service users. Our findings should be taken into account when designing treatment and preventive interventions for this professional group.

  • Psychiatry
  • Occupational & Industrial Medicine
  • Public Health

This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2014-005248

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