Laboratory test use and primary care physician supply.

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Laboratory Medicine
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Laboratory test utilization is a significant healthcare cost.
• Understanding factors influencing test volumes is crucial for resource allocation.
• The impact of physician supply on diagnostic test use requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the influence of population size, family physician (FP), and general practitioner (GP) supply on laboratory test volumes.
• To determine the relationship between specialist supply and diagnostic test utilization.
• To analyze the impact of physician density on chemistry and hematology test orders.

Main Methods:

• Population-level analysis utilizing secondary data from the Calgary Health Zone (2004-2009).
• Multivariate regression analysis to identify predictors of laboratory test volumes.
• Correlation analysis to examine the relationship between physician supply and test utilization.

Main Results:

• Population size emerged as the strongest predictor of overall laboratory test volumes.
• Increased FP and GP supply demonstrated a significant negative correlation with chemistry test volumes (partial r(2) = 0.186, P = .045).
• A trend towards decreased hematology test utilization was observed with higher FP and GP supply (partial r(2) = 0.117, P = .119).

Conclusions:

• The association between FP/GP supply and laboratory test use is complex.
• Higher numbers of FPs do not automatically lead to increased laboratory test volumes.
• Controlling for other factors, increased FP and GP supply may be linked to a reduction in laboratory test utilization.