client referral
type: Concept
broader: referral

referral patterns
type: Concept
broader: referral

self-referral
type: Concept
broader: referral

patient referral
type: Concept
broader: referral

legal and regulatory issues
type: Concept
narrower: referral

concepts
type: Collection
type: ConceptGroup
member: referral

secondary care
type: Concept
narrower: referral

referral
type: Concept
definition: Originally an informal method by which patients in need of specialized care were sent to a more advanced practitioner by their personal physician, today referral indicates a technique by which managed care plans seek to control the use of medical services by their members. Many plans require that to obtain any care except that provided by a patient's primary care physician (PCP), the patient must obtain a written referral from that physician (who is sometimes called a gatekeeper). [Source: Health Care Policy and Politics A to Z; Referral]
narrower: self-referral
narrower: referral patterns
narrower: patient referral
narrower: client referral
broader: secondary care
broader: legal and regulatory issues