Improving primary care management and referral practices for paediatric allergic rhinitis: A quality improvement study

Abstract

Background and Objectives Paediatric allergic rhinitis (AR) is often referred for specialist input despite effective primary care strategies. This study evaluates AR referrals to the Cairns Hospital Paediatric Allergy Clinic against local guidelines and assesses the impact of a quality improvement project on referral patterns. Method A 12-month retrospective audit reviewed paediatric AR referrals and management. Interventions included updated guidelines, educational initiatives, and a streamlined referral process. Post-intervention referrals were analysed to assess impact on community management. Results Pre-intervention, 10% (40/417) of referrals received were for AR, with 68% (27/40) discharged after primary management optimisation and only 20% (8/40) commencing allergen immunotherapy. Post-intervention, 22% (32/144) of referrals received were for AR, with 81% (26/32) on guideline recommended medical therapy at referral (vs 53% [21/40] pre- intervention, P = 0.01) and 50% of these (16/32) had specified the treatment duration (vs 23% [9/40] pre-intervention, P = 0.02). Discussion Our streamlined referral process with referrer-focused educational initiatives, improved referral appropriateness and enhanced pre-hospital management of AR before specialist referral.