Profile and healthcare utilisation patterns of adolescent frequent attenders in Singapore primary care: a retrospective study

ObjectivesFrequent attenders (FAs) visit healthcare settings at higher rates compared with the general population and use disproportionate amounts of healthcare resources. Frequent attendance (FA) has also been associated with greater morbidity and adverse socioeconomic circumstances. Our study aimed to describe the sociodemographic profile, clinical presentation, and healthcare utilisation patterns of adolescent FAs at polyclinics in Singapore and to determine the factors associated with adolescent FA.DesignRetrospective electronic database analysis.SettingA cluster of eight state-subsidised public primary care clinics (polyclinics).ParticipantsMultiethnic Asian adolescents aged 10–19 years who attended the eight polyclinics in 2021. FAs were defined as the top 10% of clinic attendees in terms of annual visit frequency.ResultsIn 2021, 34 645 adolescents attended the polyclinics for 75 902 visits. Visits were for acute (52.8%), chronic (26.2%) and preventive (27.7%) care. FAs attended ≥4 visits annually, accounting for 14.4% of adolescents and 42.5% of total attendances. Compared with non-FAs, FAs were older (OR 1.16, 95% CI 1.15 to 1.18, p