Table 1.
Characteristics of the included papers addressing demand, use and outcomes in OOHS
| Characteristics | Number (%) of papers |
| Country/regional setting (n=105) | |
| Mainland Europe and Republic of Ireland | 57 (54.3) |
| UK | 37 (35.2) |
| USA, Australia, or New Zealand | 6 (5.7) |
| International | 5 (4.8) |
| Year of publication (n=105) | |
| 1995–1999 | 14 (13.3) |
| 2000–2004 | 14 (13.3) |
| 2005–2009 | 16 (15.2) |
| 2010–2014 | 29 (27.7) |
| 2015–2019 (up to March 2019) | 32 (30.5) |
| Study design (n=105) | |
| Routine data analysis | 41 (39.1) |
| Retrospective case review | 17 (16.2) |
| Prospective case review | 14 (13.3) |
| Observational (case–control or cohort studies) | 6 (5.7) |
| Questionnaire/survey | 14 (13.3) |
| Mixed methods | 5 (4.8) |
| Reviews/systematic reviews | 5 (4.8) |
| Other | 3 (2.8) |
| Patient focus (n=101) | |
| General | 63 (63.4) |
| Adults (aged 16 and over) | 2 (2.0) |
| Elderly only (65 years and over) | 2 (2.0) |
| Children (under 16 years) | 6 (5.9) |
| Cancer/palliative patients | 6 (5.9) |
| Mental health/psychiatric patients | 4 (4.0) |
| Other (includes frequent attenders (4); patients with chronic disease (4); migrant patients (n=2)) | 18 (17.8) |
| Main setting (n=151*) | |
| GP out-of-hours cooperative | 86 (57.0) |
| Accident and emergency/emergency department | 21 (13.9) |
| Telephone triage service (eg, NHS Direct, NHS 24, NHS 111) | 12 (8.0) |
| GP deputising service | 9 (5.9) |
| Urgent care centre | 4 (2.6) |
| Walk-in clinic | 3 (2.0) |
| Other (eg, ambulance; casualty clinic; community hospital; minor injury unit; OOH palliative care service; daytime general practice) | 16 (10.6) |
*More than 105 due to multiple settings in some papers.
GP, general practitioner; NHS, National Health Service; OOH, out of hours; OOHS, out-of-hours health services.