Relation between family physician retention and avoidable hospital admission in Newfoundland and Labrador: a population-based cross-sectional study.

Relation between family physician retention and avoidable hospital admission in Newfoundland and Labrador: a population-based cross-sectional study. CMAJ Open. 2017 Oct 06;5(4):E746-E752 Authors: Knight JC, Mathews M, Aubrey-Bassler K Abstract BACKGROUND: Physician turnover, involving physicians' leaving clinical practice in a specific area, may disrupt continuity of care, leading to poorer health outcomes and greater use of health care services. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relation between family physician retention and avoidable hospital admission for ambulatory-care-sensitive conditions. METHODS: We conducted a population-based cross-sectional study using provincial health administrative data for residents of Newfoundland and Labrador who held a provincial health card between 2001 and 2009. Five-year family physician retention was calculated by regional economic zone, and residents within economic zones were grouped into tertiles based on physician retention level. We compared hospital admission for ambulatory-care-sensitive conditions among tertiles while adjusting for covariates. RESULTS: For 475 691 residents of the province, there was a negative relation between physician retention and hospital admission for ambulatory-care-sensitive conditions: residents of areas with moderate or low physician retention had admission rates that were 16.5% (95% confidence interval [CI) 12.6%-20.4%) and 19...
Source: cmaj - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: CMAJ Open Source Type: research