Health care utilization among rheumatoid arthritis patients referred to a rheumatology center: unequal needs, unequal care?
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 5, 2026

Preliminary Study on Acupuncture Combined with Grain-sized Moxibustion for Treating Rheumatoid Arthritis with Finger Joint Pain
Published on: May 16, 2025
C E Jacobi1, M Triemstra, I Rupp
1Department of Social Medicine, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Objective:
To quantify the utilization of health care by rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and to estimate the contribution of patient characteristics to the explanation of the use of care, in order to evaluate whether those in need of care actually receive care.
Methods:
A questionnaire survey and a clinical examination were conducted among patients with RA referred to a rheumatology center. Health care utilization was assessed for medical care, allied health care, psychosocial care, and home care. The influence of sociodemographic variables and clinical and health characteristics on health care utilization was assessed by means of logistic regression.
Results:
Multivariate analyses showed that, for all types of services, disease-related factors explained most of the utilization. However, some sociodemographic variables (age, sex, and living situation) were also related to the utilization of care.
Conclusion:
Most patients received the care they needed. However, for the elderly with RA, problems in access to allied health care and psychosocial care exist.
More Related Videos
06:31Erosion Identification in Metacarpophalangeal Joints in Rheumatoid Arthritis using High-Resolution Peripheral Quantitative Computed Tomography
Published on: October 6, 2023
07:44Evaluation of Changes in Hydration and Body Cell Mass with Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis after Exercise Program for Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients
Published on: July 14, 2023
Related Concept Videos
Rheumatic Heart Disease IV: Nursing Management
Secondary Healthcare System
Methods of Documentation VI: Case Management Model
For example, a patient with a chronic illness...
Rheumatic Heart Disease III: Medical Management
Chronic Kidney Disease III: Interprofessional Care
Genome-wide Association Studies-GWAS
GWAS does not require the identification of the target gene involved in...