OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to analyze the GPs’ routine of redirection. We reveals which diagnoses induce the most frequent redirection cases to specialists, which specialties are the most frequently targeted and how the distance from the nearest outpatient unit influences the GPs’ practice. METHODS: The analysis is based on the monthly reports (B300 form of the Hungarian Naional Health Insurance Fund Administration (OEP) of 701 general practitioners. Study covers the years 2008 and 2009, 14 million visits of 952 thousand inhabitants of South-Transdanubian Region of Hungary. GPs’ redirection routine is measured by the redirection rate, which shows the number of redirections related to the number of GP visits (%). RESULTS: The population of the region decreased by 0.8% over the years 2008-2009, however the number of GP visits increased by 12%. The surplus is mainly due to the H1N1 vaccination campaign and the rise of cardiovascular diseases and respiratory diseases of allergic origin. The average redirection rate was 10%. 76% of the GPs’ surgeries are located not farther than 15 km from the nearest outpatient unit, and 62% not farther than 15 km from a hospital. The distance from the nearest outpatient unit influences the redirection rate, but this impact is not determining. The most frequently needed specialties are rheumatology, cardiology, pulmonology and orthopedics. GPs direct their patients of 0-14 years to specialists more rarely than patients of 15 years or above and also the referred diagnoses vary between the two age groups. CONCLUSIONS: The redirection rate is lower on case of young patients and higher on case of adult, and elderly patients. While young patients get to specialists mainly due to acute and chronic respiratory diseases (many of them have allergic origin), orthopaedic malformations or simply health monitoring, adult patients have cardiovascular, rheumatic, and endocrine problems.