title: Evaluating racial/ethnic variations in outpatient epilepsy care.
abstract: This study evaluated the quality of epilepsy care in an ambulatory population of a major medical center and determined if there were any racial/ethnic variations. The well-established 'Quality Indicators in Epilepsy Treatment (QUIET)' study dataset was used. Medical record, phone interview, and mail-out survey data of 311 patients with epilepsy were linked and analyzed. Evaluation of care from provider and patient perspectives was performed. Overall, the patients with epilepsy received 40.9% of QI recommended care. The black patients were more likely to receive 50% or more QI recommended care compared with non-Hispanic whites (odds ratio [OR]=2.16, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.09-4.27). Black patients scored significantly worse than non-Hispanic whites for two patient-reported measures--perceived racial/ethnic disparities (OR=3.14, 95% CI 1.15-8.53) and difficulties getting follow-up appointments (OR=3.37, 95% CI 1.55-7.32). The results indicate the need to evaluate both provider- and patient-centered measures in quality-of-care studies in disparities research.
authors: Department of Health Policy and Management, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
authors: Ruzan
authors: R
authors: Avetisyan
authors: Howard
authors: H
authors: Cabral
authors: Georgia
authors: G
authors: Montouris
authors: Kelli
authors: K
authors: Jarrett
authors: Gabriel D
authors: GD
authors: Shapiro
authors: Dan R
authors: DR
authors: Berlowitz
authors: Carlos S
authors: CS
authors: Kase
authors: Lewis E
authors: LE
authors: Kazis
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology / Q000628:therapy; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D054625:Healthcare Disparities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult