{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,28]],"date-time":"2026-04-28T12:30:13Z","timestamp":1777379413307,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":16,"publisher":"SAGE Publications","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2009,3,1]],"date-time":"2009-03-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1235865600000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/page\/policies\/text-and-data-mining-license"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Acupunct Med"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2009,3]]},"abstract":"\n Background<\/jats:title>\n The Gateway Clinic is a specialist NHS service in South London providing acupuncture and Chinese medicine. The clinic receives a diverse range of referrals from an expanding population of local general practitioners (GPs).<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Objectives<\/jats:title>\n This study explores the referral behaviour of GPs and other primary care users of the Gateway Clinic.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Methods<\/jats:title>\n A pragmatic mixed-methods approach was used, combining mapping of GPs\u2019 usage of the Gateway as taken from the clinic's database between the years 2000 and 2005, a questionnaire survey of the referring primary care practitioners in 2005, and data, including a thematic analysis of the interview transcripts from semi-structured interviews of a purposive sample of those GPs who refer.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Results<\/jats:title>\n Doctors in the community refer a wide range of health problems to the Gateway Clinic. The most common referrals were musculoskeletal conditions (38\u201344%), general and unspecified conditions (11\u201314%), blood and immune system conditions (6\u201312%), psychological conditions (8\u201313%), neurological conditions (6\u20139%), gynaecological conditions (5\u20136%) and digestive conditions (5\u20136%). The health problems referred by local healthcare practitioners correlate strongly with the patient profile seen in private acupuncture practice. Between 2000 and 2005 numbers of healthcare practitioners increased by 218% resulting in a 300% increase in patient referrals made to the clinic; the mean frequency of referral per practitioner increased by 71%. Analysis of the qualitative data suggests that positive clinical experience encourages GPs to increase the range of conditions they refer leading to the development of informal referral guidelines.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n The Gateway Clinic has become an increasingly popular referral resource. The influences that drive referral to the clinic are multiple and follow \u201ctacit guidelines\u201d. GPs select patients on the basis of their individual clinical experience, informed by positive patient feedback and often only after more conventional medical treatment options have been exhausted.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1136\/aim.2008.000083","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2009,4,9]],"date-time":"2009-04-09T14:09:29Z","timestamp":1239286169000},"page":"21-25","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":6,"title":["Gatekeepers and the Gateway \u2013 a Mixed-Methods Inquiry into Practitioners' Referral Behaviour to the Gateway Clinic"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"27","author":[{"given":"Jason","family":"Unwin","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Complementary Therapies, School of Integrative Health, University of Westminster, London, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"David","family":"Peters","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Complementary Therapies, School of Integrative Health, University of Westminster, London, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2009,3]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_2_1_2_2","volume-title":"Clinical governance for complementary and alternative medicine in primary care","author":"Wilkinson J","year":"2004","unstructured":"WilkinsonJ, PetersD, DonaldsonJ. Clinical governance for complementary and alternative medicine in primary care. Final Report to the Department of Health and the Kings Fund. London: University of Westminster, 2004."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_3_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/fampra\/cmg514"},{"key":"e_1_2_1_4_2","volume-title":"Acupuncture: efficacy, safety and practice","author":"British Medical Association","year":"2000","unstructured":"British Medical Association. Acupuncture: efficacy, safety and practice. UK: Harwood Academic, 2000."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_5_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S0965-2299(03)00140-7"},{"key":"e_1_2_1_6_2","first-page":"25","article-title":"Access to complementary medicine via general practice","volume":"51","author":"Thomas KJ","year":"2001","unstructured":"ThomasKJ, NichollJP, FallM. Access to complementary medicine via general practice. 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