Evaluation of Continuity of Care at a Health Service Organization

The Evaluation of the Continuity of Care at the Group Health Centre, A Unique Multi-Specialty, Multi-Disciplinary Health Service Organization

This project was conducted with patients at a multi-disciplinary, multi-specialty health services organization serving 44,000 rostered patients in Northern Ontario. It investigated continuity of care for patients with diabetes in the areas of barriers and potential solutions to, and correlates of continuity; and variability in costs associated with continuity of care and patient outcomes.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Diabetes Mellitus
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Assessment of continuity of care from the patient perspective; Behavioral: Relationship between continuity of care, patient outcomes, and costs

Detailed Description

Continuity of care is a concept that has been garnering increased attention in the last few years. There have been multiple methods proposed by researchers for measuring continuity of care, most of which are based on proportions or ratios of visits to the same health care provider or centre. While a consistent method for measuring continuity of care is lacking, increased continuity of care using various definitions and measurement tools has been related to better well being, lower health care costs, better glucose control, and higher satisfaction but has also not been found to improve health outcomes in other scenarios. Whether a patient is better served by high sequential access to one provider or any provider within the same system or management team is controversial. Finally, patients' perceptions of continuity of care have not been generally evaluated or correlated with current measurement methods. This project was conducted with patients at the Group Health Centre in Sault Ste Marie, Ontario, a multi-disciplinary, multi-specialty health services organization serving 44,000 rostered patients

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment: 342

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Canada
  • Ontario
    • Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, P6B 1Y5
      • Group Health Centre

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Adults (>18 years)
• Diagnosis of diabetes mellitus (according to the definition used in 1999 by the Canadian Diabetes Association

Exclusion Criteria:

• Gestational diabetes
• Could not communicate in English
• Life expectancy or residency expectancy in Sault Ste Marie of less than three years

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Observational Models: Defined Population
• Time Perspectives: Other

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation
• Collaborators: Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care; Canadian Health Services Research Foundation; Group Health Centre, Sault Ste Marie, ON; Group Health Centre
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Hui Lee, MD FRCPC MSc, Group Health Centre

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Dolovich LR, Nair KM, Ciliska DK, Lee HN, Birch S, Gafni A, Hunt DL. The Diabetes Continuity of Care Scale: the development and initial evaluation of a questionnaire that measures continuity of care from the patient perspective. Health Soc Care Community. 2004 Nov;12(6):475-87. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2524.2004.00517.x.
• Nair KM, Dolovich LR, Ciliska DK, Lee HN. The perception of continuity of care from the perspective of patients with diabetes. Fam Med. 2005 Feb;37(2):118-24.

Helpful Links

• Group Health Centre website

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: September 1, 1999
• Study Completion: July 1, 2001

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: September 13, 2005
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 13, 2005
• First Posted (Estimate): September 16, 2005

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): September 16, 2005
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 13, 2005
• Last Verified: August 1, 2005

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Diabetes; Continuity of Care; Patient Perspective; Health Service Organization
• Other Study ID Numbers: RC 1030106