Objective To investigate the frequency of diagnoses seen among new referrals to neurology outpatient services; to understand how these services are used through exploratory analysis of diagnostic tests and follow-up appointments; and to examine the waiting times between referral and appointment. Methods Routine data from new National Health Service appointments at a single consultant-delivered clinic between September 2016 and January 2019 were collected. These clinical data were then linked to hospital administrative data. The combined data were assigned diagnostic categories based on working diagnoses to allow further analysis using descriptive statistics. Results Five diagnostic categories accounted for 62% of all patients seen within the study period, the most common of which was headache disorders. Following a first appointment, 50% of all patients were offered at least one diagnostic test, and 35% were offered a follow-up appointment, with variation in both measures by diagnostic category. Waiting times from referral to appointment also varied by diagnostic category. 65% of patients with a seizure/epilepsy disorder were seen within the 18-week referral to treatment target, compared with 38% of patients with a movement disorder. Conclusions A small number of diagnostic categories account for a large proportion of new patients. This information could be used in policy decision-making to describe a minimum subset of categories for diagnostic coding. We found significant differences in waiting times by diagnostic category, as well as tests ordered, and follow-up offered; further investigation could address causes of variation. Data may be obtained from a third party and are not publicly available. Due to patient data confidentiality and restrictions imposed by the HRA, we are unable to directly share the data for this study. Anyone wishing to access this data must apply to do so through the HRA by completing an IRAS application.

中文翻译：

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不同诊断类别的等待时间差异：对 1,951 例转诊至神经科门诊的观察性研究

目的 调查新转诊至神经内科门诊服务的诊断频率；通过诊断测试和后续预约的探索性分析来了解如何使用这些服务；并检查转介和预约之间的等待时间。方法 收集 2016 年 9 月至 2019 年 1 月期间在单一顾问提供的诊所新的国家卫生服务预约的常规数据。然后将这些临床数据与医院管理数据联系起来。根据工作诊断将组合数据分配为诊断类别，以便使用描述性统计数据进行进一步分析。结果 五个诊断类别占研究期间所有患者的 62%，其中最常见的是头痛疾病。第一次预约后，50% 的患者接受了至少一次诊断测试，35% 的患者接受了后续预约，两种测量方法均因诊断类别而异。从转诊到预约的等待时间也因诊断类别而异。65% 的癫痫发作/癫痫病患者在转诊至治疗目标的 18 周内就诊，而运动障碍患者的这一比例为 38%。结论 少数诊断类别占新发患者比例较大。该信息可用于政策决策，以描述诊断编码类别的最小子集。我们发现不同诊断类别、订购的测试和提供的后续服务的等待时间存在显着差异；进一步的调查可以解决变异的原因。数据可能从第三方获得，并且不公开。由于患者数据的保密性和 HRA 的限制，我们无法直接共享本研究的数据。任何希望访问此数据的人都必须通过 HRA 填写 IRAS 申请来申请。