An emerging body of literature suggests that quality of care may vary in association with the characteristics of individual physicians and their practices, according to background information in the article.

Hoangmai H. Pham, M.D., M.P.H., of the Center for Studying Health System Change, Washington, D.C., and colleagues examined the relationship between attributes of physicians and their practices and the extent to which their Medicare patients received preventive services. The researchers analyzed data from 3,660 U.S. physician respondents to the 2000-2001 Community Tracking Study Physician Survey linked to claims data on 24,581 Medicare beneficiaries 65 years and older who were treated in 2001. Physician variables included training and qualifications and sex. Practice setting variables included practice type, size, sources of revenue, and access to information technology. Analyses were adjusted for patient demographics and multiple diseases, as well as community characteristics.

The researchers determined the proportion of eligible beneficiaries who received each of 6 preventive services: diabetic monitoring with hemoglobin A1c measurement, eye examinations, screening for colon or breast cancer, and vaccination for influenza or pneumococcus.

The researchers found that overall, the proportion of beneficiaries receiving services was below national goals. Physician and, more consistently, practice-level characteristics were both associated with differences in the delivery of services. The strongest associations were with practice type and the percentage of practice revenue derived from Medicaid. For instance, beneficiaries receiving usual care in practices with less than 6 percent of revenue from Medicaid wer
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Contact: Alwyn Cassil
202-264-3484
JAMA and Archives Journals
26-Jul-2005