Racial differences in hospital use after acute myocardial infarction: does residential segregation play a role?
This study compares the likelihood of admission to high-mortality hospitals for black and white Medicare patients in 118 health care markets, and whether admission patterns vary if residential racial segregation is greater in the area. Risk of admission to high-mortality hospitals was 35 percent higher for blacks than for whites in markets with high residential segregation. Moreover, blacks were more likely than whites to be admitted to hospitals with high mortality, even in analyses limited to patients who lived closest to lower-mortality hospitals. Eliminating health care disparities may require policies that address social factors leading to segregation.
Sarrazin
Mary Vaughan
MV
Iowa City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Iowa, USA. mary-vaughan-sarrazin@uiowa.edu
Campbell
Mary
M
Rosenthal
Gary E
GE
D044383:Black People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D017052:Hospital Mortality / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009203:Myocardial Infarction; D010343:Patient Admission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000145:classification*; D012307:Risk Factors; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data