Table 3.
Differences in Average Wait Times by Racial/Ethnic Group and by Payment Source Group for Children under 16
| Race/Ethnicity | Unadjusted Wait Time (Minutes) | Overall Adjusted Difference (%) | Within-Hospital Adjusted Difference (%) | Between-Hospital Adjusted Difference (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Non-Hispanic white | 46.7 | Referent | Referent | Referent |
| [43.3, 50.1] | ||||
| Non-Hispanic black | 58.7* | 14.2* | 2.3 | 4.2* |
| [51.6, 65.8] | [3.3, 26.4] | [−4.3, 9.5] | [1.1, 7.3] | |
| Hispanic | 65.3* | 26.1* | 10.4* | 5.7* |
| [57.8, 72.8] | [15.1, 38.3] | [2.2, 19.1] | [3.1, 8.5] | |
| Other | 51.4 | −3.4 | 9.9 | −5.5* |
| [41.4, 61.4] | [−18.0, 13.9] | [−4.9, 27.0] | [−9.4, −1.5] | |
| Payment Source | Unadjusted Wait Time (minutes) | Overall Adjusted Difference (%) | Within-Hospital Adjusted Difference (%) | Between-Hospital Adjusted Difference (%) |
| Private | 52.0 | Referent | Referent | Referent |
| [48.1, 55.9] | ||||
| Medicaid/SCHIP | 55.7 | 3.9 | 5.4 | −0.5 |
| [50.9, 60.4] | [−2.8, 11.1] | [−0.7, 11.9] | [−2.8, 1.8] | |
| Other/unknown | 47.5 | −7.0 | 2.6 | −3.2* |
| [40.4, 54.7] | [−19.5, 7.4] | [−9.3, 16.2] | [−6.2, −0.1] | |
| Uninsured | 55.1 | −0.8 | 0.7 | −1.4 |
| [48.7, 61.5] | [−9.9, 9.3] | [−7.5, 9.6] | [−5.6, 2.9] | |
Notes. 95% confidence interval in brackets; between-hospital adjusted difference is for a 10 percentage point increase in the hospital-level share of each race/ethnicity or payment source group.
Data from NHAMCS 2005–2006 weighted to be nationally representative.
The adjusted differences are calculated from regression models that control for patient race/ethnicity, payment source, gender, age, geographic region, metropolitan status, hospital ownership, pediatric share of ED visits, triage status, day of week, time of day, and year and month of ED visit.
*
p<.05.