The region has introduced four tracks in contacts between health centres and hospitals. Three of the tracks are about how the health centers should quickly get in touch with specialists in the hospitals by phone or email. Doctors in hospitals should be able to advise on treatment or, if necessary, hospitalise the patient directly. The region has clarified who should be contacted and expanded the times for these contacts.
Shorter waiting times and the right level of care
The aim is to become better at giving patients the care they should have – without unnecessary detours and waiting times.
– Writing a referral to the hospitals works well, but we can sometimes be faster in referring the patient directly to the right level of care, without having to take the detour via the emergency room, says Pierre Cherfan, doctor region Jönköping County.
Uniqueness of the country
Region Jönköping County introduced the new way of working in September 2022. It's about an emergency track, a semi-acute track and a track to call together health care workers from hospitals and primary care to solve cases where patients are bounced back and forth.
The fourth track is about how hospitals should quickly connect with the right person at each health center in the county.
"As far as I know, we are unique in the country with this. There are similar working methods on smaller units, but here we do it fully by including all the region's health centers and hospitals," says Pierre Cherfan.