Do patient and practice characteristics confound age-group differences in preferences for general practice care? A...

Area of Science:

• Primary Care Research
• Geriatric Medicine
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Existing research on patient age and general practitioner (GP) care preferences yields inconsistent findings.
• This study addresses the need to clarify age-related differences in patient priorities for GP services.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if elderly patients exhibit different preference scores and rankings for GP care compared to younger patient groups.
• To investigate potential confounding factors, such as patient characteristics and practice location, influencing the relationship between age and the perceived importance of GP care preferences.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the Consumer Quality Index GP Care survey, encompassing 32 general practices in The Netherlands.
• Calculated preference scores and rank orders for 58 GP care statements across four age demographics (0-30, 31-50, 51-74, 75+).
• Employed chi-square tests and logistic regression to analyze age-related differences and potential confounding variables.

Main Results:

• No significant difference in the ranking order of preference statements was observed between elderly and younger patient groups (p=0.41).
• Significant differences in preference scores were identified for 53% of the statements across the age groups.
• Elderly patients were significantly less likely to categorize preference statements as 'very important'.
• Confounding factors including gender, education, perceived health, GP visit frequency, and practice location did not significantly alter these age-related findings.

Conclusions:

• While elderly patients prioritize the same aspects of GP care as younger individuals, their preferences are expressed with less intensity.
• The reduced intensity of preferences among older patients is not attributable to demographic or health-related factors like gender, education, perceived health, number of GP contacts, or practice location.