Varsha G. Vimalananda, MD, MPH

Even with significant organizational investment in cross-system coordination, primary care providers report a range of challenges in coordinating care with specialists in other health systems.

US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) clinicians’ perspectives on what constitutes a good e-consult and why suboptimal e-consult requests occur contain broadly applicable lessons for other health systems.

Data from a national survey of Veterans Health Administration specialists indicate that referral templates may improve the appropriateness, clarity, and completeness of primary care–specialty care referrals.