Is general practitioner decision making associated with patient socio-economic status?

doi:10.1016/0277-9536(95)00063-1

Social Science & Medicine

Volume 42, Issue 1, January 1996, Pages 35-46

https://doi.org/10.1016/0277-9536(95)00063-1 Get rights and content

Abstract

This paper presents a preliminary exploration into the relationship between decisions made by general practitioners (GPs) and the socio-economic status (SES) of patients. There is a large literature on the association between SES, health state and the use of health services, but relatively little has been published on the association between SES and decisions by clinicians once a patient is in the health system. The associations between GP decision making and the patient's SES, health status, gender and insurance status are examined using logit analysis. Three sets of binary choices are analysed: the decision to follow up; to prescribe; and to perform or to order a diagnostic test. Secondary data on consultations for a check up/examination were used to explore these relationships. The results suggest that SES is associated independently with the decision to test and the decision to prescribe but not with the decision to follow up. Patients of high SES are, ceteris paribus, more likely to be tested and less likely to receive a prescription compared with patients of low SES. Women are more likely to be tested and to receive a prescription than men. These findings have implications for the pursuit of equity as a goal of health services policy.

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Is general practitioner decision making associated with patient socio-economic status?

Abstract

J. hlth Econ.

J. hlth Econ.

Soc. Sci. Med.

Soc. Sci. Med.

Soc. Sci. Med.

Soc. Sci. Med.

J. Econometrics

Hlth Policy

Hlth Policy

Am. J. Med.

J. hlth Econ.

J. hlth Econ.

J. hlth Econ.

Socio-economic differences in mortality in Britain and the United States

Am. J. publ. Hlth

The Black report on socio-economic inequalities in health ten years on

Br. Med. J.

Sociologic influences on decision making by clinicians

Ann. intern. Med.

Social class variations in health care and in the nature of general practice consultations

Doctor, patients and their cultures

Doctor-patient communication in general practice

Med. Educ.

Overview: hyperchondriasis, bodily complaints and somatic styles

Am. J. Psychiatr.

Social stratification and self-management of health

J. Hlth soc. Behav.

The communication of medical information in general practice consultations as a function of a patients social class

Soc. Sci. Med.

Social class and the general practice consultation

Sociol. Hlth Illness

The relative importance of physician induced demand in the demand for medical care

Milbank Memorial Fund Q.

Influence of patient characteristics on test ordering in general practice

Br. Med. J.

The Tromso study: factors affecting patient-initiated and provider-initiated use of health care services

Sociol. Hlth Illness