A letter sent to another health care provider concerning a patient who is being referred is known as?

• A. Referral letter
• B. Consultation letter
• C. Medical note
• D. Case summary

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is how professionals communicate about a patient who is being sent to another provider for input. A consultation letter is the formal message used to obtain or relay expert input from a different clinician. It is crafted to share the patient’s pertinent history, findings, and the specific questions or concerns that the consultant is being asked to address. This type of letter helps coordinate care by giving the receiving provider a clear picture of why the referral is being made and what information or opinion is sought.

A referral letter, instead, is typically the initial request to have a patient seen by a specialist, not the document that conveys the consultant’s input or questions. A medical note or case summary are broader chart entries or overviews and don’t specifically function as the professional inquiry to another provider. So the described communication fits the role of a consultation letter.