Table 1.
Factors associated with referrals to other facilities for thyroid cancer management (N=370)
| All Respondents No. (%) | Do not need to refer No. (%) | Do need to refer No. (%) | Univariate P value | Multivariable P value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hospital Case Volume | 0.002 | 0.303 | |||
| Low | 32 (9) | 9 (28) | 23 (72) | ||
| Low-Mod | 71 (19) | 18 (25) | 53 (75) | ||
| Moderate | 124 (33) | 28 (23) | 96 (77) | ||
| High | 142 (39) | 62 (43) | 81 (57) | ||
| Practice Setting | <0.001 | ||||
| Private Practice | 226 (62) | 45 (20) | 181 (80) | 0.297 | |
| Community based academic affiliate | 47 (13) | 23 (49) | 24 (51) | 0.039 | |
| Academic tertiary care center | 74 (20) | 45 (61) | 29 (39) | 0.459 | |
| Other | 17 (5) | 3 (18) | 14 (82) | - | |
| No. specialists in practice (Mean + SD) | 4.5 ± 5.4 | 3.0 ± 2.3 | <0.001 | 0.820 | |
| Residents present | <0.001 | 0.435 | |||
| Yes | 147 (40) | 69 (47) | 78 (53) | ||
| No | 219 (60) | 47 (21) | 172 (79) | ||
| Fellows present | <0.001 | 0.115 | |||
| Yes | 79 (22) | 50 (63) | 29 (37) | ||
| No | 287 (78) | 66 (23) | 221 (77) | ||
| Percentage of practice thyroid cancer (Mean + SD) | 24.5 ± 26.7 | 9.8 ± 9.7 | <0.001 | 0.003 | |
| No. of patient care hours each week | 0.001 | 0.982 | |||
| Up to 20 | 27 (7) | 16 (59) | 11 (41) | ||
| 21-30 | 34 (9) | 17 (50) | 17 (50) | ||
| 31-40 | 77 (21) | 22 (29) | 55 (71) | ||
| 41-60 | 179 (49) | 50 (28) | 129 (72) | ||
| >60 | 52 (14) | 12 (23) | 40 (77) |