title: Reducing Inpatient Hospital and Emergency Room Utilization Among Nursing Home Residents.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the association among nursing home residents between strength of relationship with a primary care provider (PCP) and inpatient hospital and emergency room (ER) utilization.
  
  
  METHODS
  Medicare administrative data for beneficiaries residing in a nursing home between July 2007 and June 2009 were used in multivariate analyses controlling for beneficiary, nursing home, and market characteristics to assess the association between two measures-percentage of months with a PCP visit and whether the patient maintained the same usual source of care after nursing home admission-and hospital admissions and ER visits for all causes and for ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSCs).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Both measures of strength of patient-provider relationships were associated with fewer inpatient admissions and ER visits, except regularity of PCP visits and ACSC ER visits.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Policy makers should consider increasing the strength of nursing home resident and PCP relationships as one strategy for reducing inpatient and ER utilization.
authors.affiliation: 1 RTI International, Waltham, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Susan G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Haber
authors.affiliation: 2 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Suzanne G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Wensky
authors.affiliation: 3 Mathematica Policy Research, Washington, DC, USA.
authors.forename: Nancy T
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: McCall
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016208:Databases, Factual; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006300:Health Services Misuse / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients; D008297:Male; D006278:Medicare; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009735:Nursing Homes; D014481:United States
keywords: emergency room; hospital; nursing home; primary care provider