How do African American men rate their health care? An analysis of the consumer assessment of health plans 2003-2006.
African American (AA) men remain one of the most disconnected groups from health care. This study examines the association between AA men's rating of health care and rating of their personal physician. The sample included 12,074 AA men aged 18 years or older from the 2003 to 2006 waves of the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Adult Commercial Health Plan Survey. Multilevel models were used to obtain adjusted means rating of health care systems and personal physician, and the relationship of ratings with the rating of personal physician. The adjusted means were 80 (on a 100-point scale) for most health ratings and composite health care scores: personal physician (83.9), specialist (83.66), health care (82.34), getting needed care (89.57), physician communication (83.17), medical staff courtesy (86.58), and customer service helpfulness (88.37). Physician communication was the strongest predictor for physician rating. AA men's health is understudied, and additional research is warranted to improve how they interface with the health care system.
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA kelder2@slu.edu.
Keith
K
Elder
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Louise
L
Meret-Hanke
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Caress
C
Dean
University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA.
Jacqueline
J
Wiltshire
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Keon L
KL
Gilbert
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Jing
J
Wang
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Enbal
E
Shacham
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Ellen
E
Barnidge
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Elizabeth
E
Baker
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Ricardo
R
Wray
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Shahida
S
Rice
Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, MO, USA.
Marquisha
M
Johns
Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, USA.
Tondra
T
Moore
D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000368:Aged; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D054526:Men's Health / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction / Q000208:ethnology*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D014481:United States; D016270:United States Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; D055815:Young Adult
African American; health care; men; physicians; ratings