Table 3 Utilization of visits to gastroenterology a consultant according to patients and physicians’ characteristics
Variable | High number of visits (≥6) N (%) | Low number of visits (0–5) N (%) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|
Total | 23,703 | 51,510 | |
Sex, female | 14,621 (61.7) | 28,312 (55.0) | < 0.001 |
Age, years | Df = 5 | < 0.001 | |
19–34 | 2466 (10.4) | 8328 (16.2) | |
35–44 | 3010 (12.7) | 9781 (19.0) | |
45–54 | 3839 (16.2) | 11,395 (22.1) | |
55–64 | 5477 (23.1) | 11,498 (22.3) | |
65–74 | 5250 (22.1) | 7322 (14.2) | |
75+ | 3662 (15.4) | 3191 (6.2) | |
Country of Birth | Df = 4 | < 0.001 | |
Israel | 13,664 (57.6) | 32,200 (62.5) | |
Former Soviet Union | 5404 (22.8) | 12,271 (23.8) | |
Asia/North Africa | 1700 (7.2) | 2239 (4.3) | |
Europe/America | 2093 (8.8) | 3414 (6.6) | |
Other/ unknown | 843 (3.6) | 1391 (2.7) | |
Residential district | Df = 5 | < 0.001 | |
Center | 7099 (30.0) | 16,767 (32.6) | |
Jerusalem | 1602 (6.8) | 1694 (3.3) | |
North | 1683 (7.1) | 4195 (8.2) | |
Haifa | 1782 (7.5) | 5009 (9.7) | |
Tel Aviv | 6942 (29.4) | 15,554 (30.3) | |
South | 3908 (16.5) | 7073 (13.8) | |
SES of place of residence | < 0.001 | ||
Middle/High (5–10) | 18,324 (81.0) | 41,543 (85.0) | |
Low (1–4) | 4285 (19.0) | 7334 (15.0) | |
Background diseases | |||
Heart disease | 6483 (27.3) | 5573 (10.8) | < 0.001 |
Hypertension | 11,226 (47.4) | 16,022 (31.1) | < 0.001 |
Diabetes | 4669 (19.7) | 5626 (10.9) | < 0.001 |
Number of PPIs purchases | < 0.001 | ||
Low (0–8) | 9641 (40.7) | 29,393 (57.1) | |
High (9+) | 14,063 (59.3) | 22,122 (42.9) | |
Primary care physician board certification | Df = 3 | < 0.001 | |
Family medicine | 6673 (28.2) | 14,665 (28.5) | |
None | 8896 (37.5) | 19,318 (37.5) | |
Internal medicine | 5599 (23.6) | 12,485 (24.2) | |
Other | 2535 (10.7) | 5042 (9.8) | |
Board certification of the clinic physician-manager | Df = 4 | < 0.001 | |
Family medicine | 3800 (16.1) | 8030 (15.6) | |
None | 2361 (10.0) | 3764 (7.3) | |
Internal medicine | 2589 (11.0) | 6052 (11.8) | |
Medical director | 9446 (40.0) | 21,183 (41.2) | |
Other | 5409 (22.9) | 12,334 (24.0) | |
Primary care physician seniority | 0.001 | ||
Low (0–8 years) | 12,125 (51.2) | 25,689 (49.9) | |
High (9–43 years) | 11,578 (48.8) | 25,821 (50.1) | |