Is primary care physician supply correlated with health outcomes?
Assessment of the relation between life indicators and health outcomes is a complex problem. The authors' analysis uses descriptive canonical correlation, and their solution suggests that socioeconomic factors play a major role in health outcomes. The supply of primary care physicians has a lesser but still important role: canonical correlation suggests no apparent role in enhancing health outcomes among the elderly but a larger role in improving health among the young. The authors' analysis does support the notion that specialist physician supply has no correlation with a wide range of health outcomes.
Vogel
R L
RL
Department of Family and Community Medicine, Mercer University School of Medicine, Macon, GA 31206-3608, USA.
Ackermann
R J
RJ
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D006302:Health Services Research; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006280:Health Workforce; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010821:Physicians, Family / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013038:Specialization; D014481:United States