A move to a health centre: the effect on home visiting, repeat prescribing and patients' choice of transport.

A group of general practitioners recorded data about their work before and after moving into a health centre. A group of doctors who did not enter the health centre made equivalent observations for comparison.Patients of the health centre doctors increased their use of public transport by 13 per cent; the ;no-entry' group of doctors did not record a similar increase. A 27 per cent reduction in home visits was thought to be a direct result of entry into the health centre, contributing factors being, in all probability, availability of public transport and the provision of a pharmacy. An increase in the issue of repeat prescriptions without consultation was considered to be evidence of a wider trend since this change was not confined to the health centre doctors.It was concluded that patients will attend a health centre if public transport is easily available and that this factor should be born in mind when planning health centres, especially in inner city areas.