Does distance from a clinic and poverty impact visit adherence for noncommunicable diseases? A retrospective cohort study using electronic medical records in rural Haiti.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Adherence to regular outpatient visits is vital to managing noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), a growing burden in low and middle-income countries. We characterized visit adherence among patients with NCDs in rural Haiti, hypothesizing higher poverty and distance from the clinic were associated with lower adherence.

Methods

We analyzed electronic medical records from a cohort of adults in an NCD clinic in Mirebalais, Haiti (April 2013 to June 2016). Visit adherence was: 1) visit constancy (≥1 visit every 3 months), 2) no gaps in care (> 60 days between visits), 3) ≥1 visit in the last quarter, and 4) ≥6 visits per year. We incorporated an adapted measure of intensity of multidimensional poverty. We calculated distance from clinic as Euclidean distance or self-report

SUBMITTER: Yan LD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7556963 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature