IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v19y2022i24p16952-d1006091.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A Bibliometric Analysis and Visualization of Decision Support Systems for Healthcare Referral Strategies

Author

Listed:
  • Hesham Ali Behary Aboelkhir

    (College of Science and Engineering, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha 34110, Qatar)

  • Adel Elomri

    (College of Science and Engineering, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha 34110, Qatar)

  • Tarek Y. ElMekkawy

    (Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, College of Engineering, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar)

  • Laoucine Kerbache

    (College of Science and Engineering, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha 34110, Qatar)

  • Mohamed S. Elakkad

    (Surgical Research Section, Department of Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha 3050, Qatar)

  • Abdulla Al-Ansari

    (Surgical Research Section, Department of Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha 3050, Qatar)

  • Omar M. Aboumarzouk

    (Surgical Research Section, Department of Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha 3050, Qatar
    College of Medicine, QU-Health, Qatar University, Doha 2713, Qatar
    School of Medicine, Dentistry and Nursing, The University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, UK)

  • Abdelfatteh El Omri

    (Surgical Research Section, Department of Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha 3050, Qatar)

Abstract

Background: The referral process is an important research focus because of the potential consequences of delays, especially for patients with serious medical conditions that need immediate care, such as those with metastatic cancer. Thus, a systematic literature review of recent and influential manuscripts is critical to understanding the current methods and future directions in order to improve the referral process. Methods: A hybrid bibliometric-structured review was conducted using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. Searches were conducted of three databases, Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed, in addition to the references from the eligible papers. The papers were considered to be eligible if they were relevant English articles or reviews that were published from January 2010 to June 2021. The searches were conducted using three groups of keywords, and bibliometric analysis was performed, followed by content analysis. Results: A total of 163 papers that were published in impactful journals between January 2010 and June 2021 were selected. These papers were then reviewed, analyzed, and categorized as follows: descriptive analysis ( n = 77), cause and effect ( n = 12), interventions ( n = 50), and quality management ( n = 24). Six future research directions were identified. Conclusions: Minimal attention was given to the study of the primary referral of blood cancer cases versus those with solid cancer types, which is a gap that future studies should address. More research is needed in order to optimize the referral process, specifically for suspected hematological cancer patients.

Suggested Citation

  • Hesham Ali Behary Aboelkhir & Adel Elomri & Tarek Y. ElMekkawy & Laoucine Kerbache & Mohamed S. Elakkad & Abdulla Al-Ansari & Omar M. Aboumarzouk & Abdelfatteh El Omri, 2022. "A Bibliometric Analysis and Visualization of Decision Support Systems for Healthcare Referral Strategies," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(24), pages 1-27, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:24:p:16952-:d:1006091
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/24/16952/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/24/16952/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Robert Dunlea & Leslie Lenert, 2015. "Understanding Patients’ Preferences for Referrals to Specialists for an Asymptomatic Condition," Medical Decision Making, , vol. 35(6), pages 691-702, August.
    2. Laura Esteve-Matalí & Ingrid Vargas & Franco Amigo & Pere Plaja & Francesc Cots & Erick F. Mayer & Joan-Manuel Pérez-Castejón & María-Luisa Vázquez, 2021. "Understanding How to Improve the Use of Clinical Coordination Mechanisms between Primary and Secondary Care Doctors: Clues from Catalonia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-18, March.
    3. Ryan Tandjung & Seraina Morell & Andreas Hanhart & Andreas Haefeli & Fabio Valeri & Thomas Rosemann & Oliver Senn, 2017. "Referral determinants in Swiss primary care with a special focus on managed care," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(11), pages 1-10, November.
    4. Mascia, Daniele & Angeli, Federica & Di Vincenzo, Fausto, 2015. "Effect of hospital referral networks on patient readmissions," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 113-121.
    5. Bornmann, Lutz & Marx, Werner, 2018. "Critical rationalism and the search for standard (field-normalized) indicators in bibliometrics," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 12(3), pages 598-604.
    6. Li, Na & Pan, Jie & Xie, Xiaoqing, 2020. "Operational decision making for a referral coordination alliance- When should patients be referred and where should they be referred to?," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    7. Govindan, Kannan & Soleimani, Hamed & Kannan, Devika, 2015. "Reverse logistics and closed-loop supply chain: A comprehensive review to explore the future," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 240(3), pages 603-626.
    8. Li, Na & Zhang, Yue & Teng, De & Kong, Nan, 2021. "Pareto optimization for control agreement in patient referral coordination," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    9. Lutz Bornmann & Hans‐Dieter Daniel, 2007. "What do we know about the h index?," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 58(9), pages 1381-1385, July.
    10. Zhou, Shenghai & Li, Debiao & Yin, Yong, 2021. "Coordinated appointment scheduling with multiple providers and patient-and-physician matching cost in specialty care," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    11. Chiara Pittalis & Ruairi Brugha & Jakub Gajewski, 2019. "Surgical referral systems in low- and middle-income countries: A review of the evidence," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(9), pages 1-16, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hao, Yuchen & Liu, Chuang & Zhao, Lugang & Liu, Weibo, 2023. "A dual-clustering algorithm for a robust medical grid partition problem considering patient referral," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    2. Assarzadegan, Parisa & Rasti-Barzoki, Morteza, 2020. "A game theoretic approach for pricing under a return policy and a money back guarantee in a closed loop supply chain," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 222(C).
    3. Lucy Semerjian & Kunle Okaiyeto & Mike O. Ojemaye & Temitope Cyrus Ekundayo & Aboi Igwaran & Anthony I. Okoh, 2021. "Global Systematic Mapping of Road Dust Research from 1906 to 2020: Research Gaps and Future Direction," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-21, October.
    4. Huihui Liu & Xiaohang Yue & Hui Ding & G. Keong Leong, 2017. "Optimal Remanufacturing Certification Contracts in the Electrical and Electronic Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-17, March.
    5. Yang, Hui & Chen, Jing & Chen, Xu & Chen, Bintong, 2017. "The impact of customer returns in a supply chain with a common retailer," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 256(1), pages 139-150.
    6. Bo Wang & Ning Wang, 2022. "Decision Models for a Dual-Recycling Channel Reverse Supply Chain with Consumer Strategic Behavior," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-18, August.
    7. Zhiguo Wang & Lufei Huang & Cici Xiao He, 2021. "A multi-objective and multi-period optimization model for urban healthcare waste’s reverse logistics network design," Journal of Combinatorial Optimization, Springer, vol. 42(4), pages 785-812, November.
    8. Salehi-Amiri, Amirhossein & Zahedi, Ali & Akbapour, Navid & Hajiaghaei-Keshteli, Mostafa, 2021. "Designing a sustainable closed-loop supply chain network for walnut industry," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    9. Patricia van Loon & Luk N. Van Wassenhove & Ales Mihelic, 2022. "Designing a circular business strategy: 7 years of evolution at a large washing machine manufacturer," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(3), pages 1030-1041, March.
    10. Ramani, Vinay & De Giovanni, Pietro, 2017. "A two-period model of product cannibalization in an atypical Closed-loop Supply Chain with endogenous returns: The case of DellReconnect," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 262(3), pages 1009-1027.
    11. Bornmann, Lutz & Mutz, Rüdiger & Daniel, Hans-Dieter, 2010. "The h index research output measurement: Two approaches to enhance its accuracy," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 4(3), pages 407-414.
    12. Gregorio González-Alcaide, 2021. "Bibliometric studies outside the information science and library science field: uncontainable or uncontrollable?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(8), pages 6837-6870, August.
    13. Gong, Hailei & Zhang, Zhi-Hai, 2022. "Benders decomposition for the distributionally robust optimization of pricing and reverse logistics network design in remanufacturing systems," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 297(2), pages 496-510.
    14. Dunaiski, Marcel & Geldenhuys, Jaco & Visser, Willem, 2019. "On the interplay between normalisation, bias, and performance of paper impact metrics," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 13(1), pages 270-290.
    15. Mehmet Talha Dulman & Surendra M. Gupta, 2018. "Evaluation of Maintenance and EOL Operation Performance of Sensor-Embedded Laptops," Logistics, MDPI, vol. 2(1), pages 1-22, January.
    16. Cao, Kaiying & Xu, Yuqiu & Hua, Ye & Choi, Tsan-Ming, 2023. "Supplier or co-optor: Optimal channel and logistics selection problems on retail platforms," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 311(3), pages 971-988.
    17. Panagiotidou, Sofia & Nenes, George & Zikopoulos, Christos & Tagaras, George, 2017. "Joint optimization of manufacturing/remanufacturing lot sizes under imperfect information on returns quality," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 258(2), pages 537-551.
    18. Cannella, Salvatore & Bruccoleri, Manfredi & Framinan, Jose M., 2016. "Closed-loop supply chains: What reverse logistics factors influence performance?," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 175(C), pages 35-49.
    19. Marcin Kozak & Lutz Bornmann, 2012. "A New Family of Cumulative Indexes for Measuring Scientific Performance," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 7(10), pages 1-4, October.
    20. Stefano Breschi & Francesco Lissoni & Gianluca Tarasconi, 2014. "Inventor Data for Research on Migration and Innovation: A Survey and a Pilot," WIPO Economic Research Working Papers 17, World Intellectual Property Organization - Economics and Statistics Division.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:24:p:16952-:d:1006091. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.