title: Comparison of hospitalization rates among for-profit and nonprofit dialysis facilities.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The vast majority of US dialysis facilities are for-profit and profit status has been associated with processes of care and outcomes in patients on dialysis. This study examined whether dialysis facility profit status was associated with the rate of hospitalization in patients starting dialysis.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a retrospective cohort study of Medicare beneficiaries starting dialysis between 2005 and 2008 using data from the US Renal Data System. All-cause hospitalization was examined and compared between for-profit and nonprofit dialysis facilities through 2009 using Poisson regression. Companion analyses of cause-specific hospitalization that are likely to be influenced by dialysis facility practices including hospitalizations for heart failure and volume overload, access complications, or hyperkalemia were conducted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The cohort included 150,642 patients. Of these, 12,985 (9%) were receiving care in nonprofit dialysis facilities. In adjusted models, patients receiving hemodialysis in for-profit facilities had a 15% (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 13% to 18%) higher relative rate of hospitalization compared with those in nonprofit facilities. Among patients receiving peritoneal dialysis, the rate of hospitalization in for-profit versus nonprofit facilities was not significantly different (relative rate, 1.07; 95% CI, 0.97 to 1.17). Patients on hemodialysis receiving care in for-profit dialysis facilities had a 37% (95% CI, 31% to 44%) higher rate of hospitalization for heart failure or volume overload and a 15% (95% CI, 11% to 20%) higher rate of hospitalization for vascular access complications.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Hospitalization rates were significantly higher for patients receiving hemodialysis in for-profit compared with nonprofit dialysis facilities.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Medicine,, *Public Health Sciences, and, ††Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, University of California, Davis, California;, †San Francisco Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, California;, Departments of ‡Medicine and, ‖Epidemiology, and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, California;, §United States Renal Data System Special Studies Center, Stanford, California;, ¶Department of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, ‡‡Department of Medicine, University of California Irvine, California.
authors.forename: Lorien S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Dalrymple
authors.forename: Kirsten L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Johansen
authors.forename: Patrick S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Romano
authors.forename: Glenn M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Chertow
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mu
authors.forename: Julie H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Ishida
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Grimes
authors.forename: George A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Kaysen
authors.forename: Danh V
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Nguyen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006268:Health Facilities / Q000191:economics / Q000639:trends*; D054625:Healthcare Disparities; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000191:economics / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D007674:Kidney Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000191:economics / Q000208:ethnology / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D006278:Medicare; D008875:Middle Aged; D009939:Organizations, Nonprofit / Q000191:economics / Q000639:trends*; D010530:Peritoneal Dialysis / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics / Q000639:trends*; D017149:Private Sector / Q000191:economics / Q000639:trends*; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care; D006435:Renal Dialysis / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics / Q000639:trends*; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult