Spatial analysis of factors influencing choice of paediatric practice for mothers from low-income and minority populations.

ABSTRACT:

Aim

Publicly reported quality data theoretically enable parents to choose higher-performing paediatric practices. However, little is known about how parents decide where to seek paediatric care. We explored the relationship between geographic factors, care quality and choice of practice to see if the decision-making process could be described in terms of a 'gravity model' of spatial data.

Methods

In the context of a randomised controlled trial, we used a geographic information system to calculate flow volume between practice locations and participants' homes, to locate subjects within a census tract, to determine distances between points and to perform exploratory mapping. Generalised linear modelling was then used to determine whether the data fit a gravity model, which is

SUBMITTER: Goff SL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6555692 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature