GPs' differing responses to out-of-hours calls.

After noticing trainer-trainee differences in the proportion of patients visited, a three-month audit of all out-of-hours requests and calls was performed. A wide variation of response was found among doctors on the rota. Those more likely to visit were also more likely to prescribe. A large proportion of the user population was either very young or very old and had an annual consultation rate nearly three times the mean for the practice as a whole.