Which of the following best describes an external referral?

An external referral is characterized by a situation where a patient seeks care from a provider outside of their primary healthcare system or practice, typically because they require specialized services or treatment that their primary provider cannot offer. This often happens when patients take the initiative to find a specialist or a different healthcare facility on their own, which falls under self-referral.

In this context, the act of self-referring means that the patient identifies their own need for additional care and reaches out to an external provider directly. This is distinct from referrals initiated by healthcare providers or those that happen through automated systems, as those typically involve a structured communication process initiated by a professional in the patient's care team. Therefore, the definition of an external referral as one initiated by the patient themselves is the most accurate and precise in this scenario.