title: Rheumatologists' quality of care for lupus: comparison study between a university and county hospital.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Quality of care received from physicians may impact health outcomes in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We compared physician quality of care (P-QOC), health-related quality of life (HRQOL), and disease activity and damage between SLE patients receiving outpatient care at a university and a county rheumatology clinic.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-two university and 41 county clinic SLE patients provided data on 5 P-QOC parameters and HRQOL health outcomes (Short Form 36 [SF-36] health survey and EuroQol 5-domain instrument [EQ-5D]). Disease activity and damage were measured. Chi-square analysis and Student's t-tests were used for comparisons.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall satisfaction with medical care was similar; however, university patients had higher P-QOC scores than county patients in "perception of doctor's understanding of impact of SLE on patient's life" (P = 0.02) and "providing education/educational information to understand their disease" (P = 0.05). HRQOL, disease activity, and damage were similar in the 2 groups. Overall satisfaction with medical care was directly related SF-36 general health (r = 0.34, P = 0.03) and EQ-5D visual analog scale on state of health (r = 0.39, P = 0.01), and inversely related EQ-5D pain (r = -0.37, P = 0.02).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patient perceptions of P-QOC differed across the 2 centers despite similar demographics, clinical and HRQOL outcomes, and significant overlap in the physicians serving each clinic. Patients' overall satisfaction with medical care is associated with better HRQOL.
authors.affiliation: Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
authors.forename: Anisha B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Dua
authors.forename: Rohit
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Aggarwal
authors.forename: Rachel A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Mikolaitis
authors.forename: Winston
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sequeira
authors.forename: Joel A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Block
authors.forename: Meenakshi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jolly
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006766:Hospitals, County / Q000592:standards*; D006785:Hospitals, University / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D008180:Lupus Erythematosus, Systemic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010820:Physicians / Q000592:standards*; D011787:Quality of Health Care / Q000592:standards*; D012219:Rheumatology / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*; D055815:Young Adult