Recommending encounters according to the sociodemographic characteristics of patient strata can reduce risks from type 2 diabetes.

Objectives: Physician encounters with patients with type 2 diabetes act as motivation for self-management and lifestyle adjustments that are indispensable for diabetes treatment. We elucidate the sociodemographic sources of variation in encounter usage and the impact of encounter usage on glucose control, which can be used to recommend encounter usage for different sociodemographic strata of patients to reduce risks from Type 2 diabetes.

Data And Methods: We analyzed data from a multi-facility clinic in the Midwestern United States on 2124 patients with type 2 diabetes, from 95 ZIP codes.

Do qualifications matter? A qualitative study of how villagers decide their health care providers in a developing economy.

Introduction: The National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) was launched in India in 2005 to address the health needs of under-served populations in rural areas, and to support universal access to care. Despite this initiative, unaccredited informal providers (IPs) often remain patients' first point of contact, which has led to inconsistencies in treatment, and has compromised the quality of care.

Aim: To explore the factors that influence patients' decisions about healthcare providers in rural areas of central India.