TABLE 3.
Characteristics of the study sample and comparison of subjects by overall experience of care
| Characteristic | Overall Experience of Care | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total (n=645) | Excellent (n=264) | Average (n=232) | Poor (n=149) | Test for Difference | |
| Personal Characteristics | |||||
| Average age | 48.0 (14.9) | 48.4 (14.9) | 47.6 (14.3) | 47.8 (15.8) | NS |
| Per cent female | 64.6 (414) | 63.7 (167) | 65.8 (152) | 64.6 (95) | NS |
| Per cent indicating health status as good or excellent | 37.8 (241) | 43.0 (113) | 37.3 (85) | 29.9 (43) | x2=6.9; df 2 p=.03 |
| Per cent with disability | 31.6 (200) | 29.5 (77) | 32.4 (73) | 33.8 (50) | NS |
| Per cent with chronic health problem* | 61.6 (392) | 61.1 (160) | 60.5 (138) | 64.4 (94) | NS |
| Healthcare Use | |||||
| Regular provider: Physician | 94.1 (607) | 97.4 (257) | 92.7 (215) | 90.6 (135) | x2=9.2; df 2 |
| Clinic only | 5.9 (38) | 2.7 (7) | 7.3 (17) | 9.4 (14) | p=.01 |
| Mean number of years of affiliation | 11.2 (9.0) | 11.9 (10) | 11.3 (8.5) | 9.7 (7.8) | NS |
| Mean number of primary care visits in last 12 months | 6.3 (7.0) | 7.1 (8.3) | 4.9 (4.6) | 7.1 (7.3) | F=6.9; df 2 p=.001 |
| Mean number of unique general or family physicians seen | 2.0 (1.3) | 1.8 (1.1) | 2.0 (1.5) | 2.3 (1.5) | F=8.3; df 2 p=.003 |
| Usual wait time for appointment Less than 2 days 2 to 7 days 7 days to 2 weeks 2 weeks to 4 weeks More than 4 weeks |
35.2 (220) 32.6 (204) 11.8 (74) 9.3 (58) 11.0 (69) |
47.3 (123) 28.5 (74) 9.2 (24) 5.8 (15) 9.2 (24) |
30.6 (68) 37.4 (83) 9.0 (20) 11.7 (26) 11.3 (25) |
20.3 (29) 32.9 (47) 21.0 (30) 11.9 (17) 14.0 (20) |
x2=45; df 8 p<.0001 |
| Usual wait time in waiting room before clinical visit Less than 15 minutes 15 to 29 minutes 30 to 59 minutes More than an hour |
34.7 (218) 38.8 (244) 19.9 (125) 6.7 (42) |
37.6 (99) 39.2 (103) 19.0 (50) 4.2 (11) |
38.7 (87) 35.6 (80) 18.7 (42) 7.1 (16) |
22.7 (32) 43.3 (61) 23.4 (33) 10.6 (15) |
x2=15.8; df 6 p=.02 |
*
Percentage indicating they had been told by a doctor that they had any of the following: high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, depression, arthritis, respiratory disease, heart disease.