title: Association between education and quality of diabetes care in Switzerland.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Low socioeconomic status is associated with higher prevalence of diabetes, worse outcomes, and worse quality of care. We explored the relationship between education, as a measure of socioeconomic status, and quality of care in the Swiss context.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data were drawn from a population-based survey of 519 adults with diabetes during fall 2011 and summer 2012 in a canton of Switzerland. We assessed patients and diabetes characteristics. Eleven indicators of quality of care were considered (six of process and five of outcomes of care). After bivariate analyses, regression analyses adjusted for age, sex, and diabetic complications were performed to assess the relationship between education and quality of care.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of 11 quality-of-care indicators, three were significantly associated with education: funduscopy (patients with tertiary versus primary education were more likely to get the exam: odds ratio, 1.8; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.004-3.3) and two indicators of health-related quality of life (patients with tertiary versus primary education reported better health-related quality of life: Audit of Diabetes-Dependent Quality of Life: β=0.6 [95% CI, 0.2-0.97]; SF-12 mean physical component summary score: β=3.6 [95% CI, 0.9-6.4]).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest the presence of educational inequalities in quality of diabetes care. These findings may help health professionals focus on individuals with increased needs to decrease health inequalities.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Aline
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Flatz
authors.affiliation: Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Alejandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Casillas
authors.affiliation: Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Stringhini
authors.affiliation: Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Emilie
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Zuercher
authors.affiliation: Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Burnand
authors.affiliation: Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Peytremann-Bridevaux
keywords: diabetes; education; primary care; quality of care