Background: Income inequality has been associated with multiple adverse health outcomes including diabetes and obesity, with this relationship potentially mediated by limited access to primary care. We explore the association between county-level economic inequality and the primary care physician (PCP) workforce in North Carolina.
Methods: County-level economic and demographic data were obtained for 2013 to 2018. Economic inequality was quantified using the Gini coefficient of household income. PCP workforce data were obtained from a statewide database and correlated with county characteristics using fixed-effects linear regression.
Results: The analysis included 600 county-years. An increase of 0.1 in the Gini coefficient was correlated with a decrease in PCP workforce by 0.58 physicians/1000 residents in a given county. Within family medicine, a 0.1 increase in the Gini coefficient was associated with a decrease of 0.53 family medicine physicians per 1000 residents.
Conclusions: Local increases in economic inequality are associated with local decreases in PCP workforce (per capita), particularly in family medicine. Although further research is needed to identify specific reasons for the decrease, medical schools in areas with high economic inequality should consider prioritizing training of physicians in family medicine and other primary care specialties to better serve community health care needs.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.3122/jabfm.2022.01.210117 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Voices and visions: Navigating the landscape of sexual, reproductive, and maternal health and rights in Latin America and the Caribbean: A stakeholder mapping and analysis.
Glob Public Health
December 2025
Center for Implementation and Innovation in Health Policies, Institute for Clinical Effectiveness and Health Policy, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
This article presents the results of a mapping and analysis of key stakeholders operating in the field of Sexual, Reproductive, and Maternal Health and Rights (SRMHR) who are involved in the entitlement of health rights and access to health services for women, adolescents, LGBTQI+ individuals, migrants, indigenous people, Afro-descendants, and people with disabilities in Latin America and the Caribbean. Our study focuses on Argentina, Colombia, Guatemala, Guyana, Jamaica, Mexico, and Peru. The primary objective was to identify and comprehensively categorise the activities undertaken by them, since their actions shape, and promote or hinder the SRMHR political agenda in the region.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSupport in digital health skill development for vulnerable groups in a public library setting: perspectives of trainers.
Front Digit Health
January 2025
Department Organisation and Quality of Care, Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research, Utrecht, Netherlands.
Introduction: The digitalization of healthcare poses a risk of exacerbating health inequalities. Dutch public libraries offer freely accessible e-health courses given by trainers. However, there is limited knowledge on whether these libraries successfully reach and support those in need.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDonations triggered by inequality tolerance affect the evolution of cooperation in spatial public goods game.
Chaos
January 2025
School of Statistics and Mathematics, Yunnan University of Finance and Economics, Kunming 650221, China.
Generosity through donation plays a crucial role in reducing inequality and influencing human behavior. However, previous research on donation has overlooked individuals' acceptance of the extent of inequality, which acts as a trigger for donation. To address this gap, this paper systematically explores the impact of donation based on inequality tolerance on the evolution of cooperation in spatial public goods game.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDesigning the First Pregnancy Guaranteed Income Program in the United States: Qualitative Needs Assessment and Human-Centered Design to Develop the Abundant Birth Project.
JMIR Form Res
January 2025
Sexual Health and Reproductive Equity Program, School of Social Welfare, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States.
Background: Racial inequities in pregnancy outcomes persist despite investments in clinical, educational, and behavioral interventions, indicating that a new approach is needed to address the root causes of health disparities. Guaranteed income during pregnancy has the potential to narrow racial health inequities for birthing people and infants by alleviating financial stress.
Objective: We describe community-driven formative research to design the first pregnancy-guaranteed income program in the United States-the Abundant Birth Project (ABP).
Differences in the effectiveness of individual-level smoking cessation interventions by socioeconomic status.
Cochrane Database Syst Rev
January 2025
Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Background: People from lower socioeconomic groups are more likely to smoke and less likely to succeed in achieving abstinence, making tobacco smoking a leading driver of health inequalities. Contextual factors affecting subpopulations may moderate the efficacy of individual-level smoking cessation interventions. It is not known whether any intervention performs differently across socioeconomically-diverse populations and contexts.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!