Implications
Considering our results, we envisage some practical applications from a
health policy perspective. Both hospitals belong to the same health area
in Barcelona and the tertiary hospital is the referral center for
patients managed at the second-level hospital. However, their quick
diagnosis units are independent and not interconnected. It is, however,
feasible to design a functional model with integrated quick diagnosis
units of the same health areas with shared working protocols and
resources. Accordingly, patients could be referred to these units
depending on the complexity of their disorders or the availability of
spaces in the unit, or they could also be referred based on criteria of
efficiency or cost optimization, irrespectively of whether they were
referred from primary care centers or the emergency department.