ABSTRACT
The evaluations of GP open access to therapy services identified significant benefits, which included: improved waiting times, improved patient outcomes, less treatment required, greater patient satisfaction, greater healthcare practitioner satisfaction, and increased cost-effectiveness. Professional bodies representing professions such as dietetics, occupational therapy, and nursing are supportive of the concept of patient self-referral. The most recent government health policies from each of the UK member countries have continued to put primary care at the centre of the development of health services. They consistently outline the intention to improve quality, achieve better, fairer access with increased flexibility, improve communication and reduce waiting times. The need to pilot and evaluate patient self-referral services was recognised because of the limited evidence on which to base service demand and the required resources. It was also an acknowledgement of a prevailing perception that removing medical control could result in increased referrals and demand for services that could not be met.
