Dataset Information

Using predicted Spanish preference to target bilingual mailings in a mail survey with telephone follow-up.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Spanish-preferring Medicare beneficiaries are underrepresented in national patient experience surveys. We test a method for improving their representation via higher response rates.

Data sources/study setting

2009-2010 Medicare CAHPS surveys; Medicare population.

Study design

We used surname and address to predict Spanish-language preference for a national sample of 177 139 beneficiaries. We randomized half of the 10 000 non-Puerto Rico beneficiaries with the highest predicted probabilities of Spanish preference (>10 percent) to bilingual mailings (intervention) and half to standard English-only mailings (control).

Data collection

Medicare CAHPS Survey data were collected through mail surveys with telephone follow-up of nonrespondents.

Principal findings

Mail response rate was higher for intervention (28.7 percent) than control (23.9 percent) (P < 0.0001); phone response rates among mail nonrespondents were similar in intervention and control arms (15.8 percent vs 15.7 percent, P = 0.90). Targeted bilingual mailings induced 6.5 percent of those who would not have responded to respond by mail and 54.0 percent of those who would have responded in English to respond in Spanish. Beneficiaries with greater Spanish probabilities showed greater increases in response rates, a higher proportion of responses in Spanish, and lower control response rates among.

Conclusions

Targeted bilingual mailing of mixed-mode surveys using commonly available surname and address information can efficiently increase representation of this underrepresented group.

SUBMITTER: Elliott MN

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6338289 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Using predicted Spanish preference to target bilingual mailings in a mail survey with telephone follow-up.

Elliott Marc N MN Klein David J DJ Kallaur Paul P Brown Julie A JA Hays Ron D RD Orr Nate N Zaslavsky Alan M AM Beckett Megan K MK Gaillot Sarah S Edwards Carol A CA Haviland Amelia M AM

Health services research 20181122 1

<h4>Objective</h4>Spanish-preferring Medicare beneficiaries are underrepresented in national patient experience surveys. We test a method for improving their representation via higher response rates.<h4>Data sources/study setting</h4>2009-2010 Medicare CAHPS surveys; Medicare population.<h4>Study design</h4>We used surname and address to predict Spanish-language preference for a national sample of 177 139 beneficiaries. We randomized half of the 10 000 non-Puerto Rico beneficiaries with the high ...[more]

PMID: 30467826

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Project description:BackgroundThe continued increase in hospital admissions is a significant and complex issue facing health services. There is little research exploring patient perspectives or examining individual admissions among patients with frequent admissions for chronic ambulatory care sensitive (ACS) conditions. This paper aims to describe characteristics of older, rural patients frequently admitted with ACS conditions and identify factors associated with their admissions from the patient perspective.MethodsPatients aged 65+ resident in North Coast NSW with three or more admissions for selected ACS chronic conditions within a 12 month period, were invited to participate in a postal survey and follow up telephone call. Survey and telephone data were linked to admission and health service program data. Descriptive statistics were generated for survey respondents; logistic regression models developed to compare characteristics of patients with 3 or with 4+ admissions; and comparisons made between survey respondents and non-respondents.ResultsSurvey respondents (n=102) had a mean age of 77.1 years (range 66-95 years), and a mean of 4.1 admissions within 12 months; 49% had at least three chronic conditions; the majority had low socioeconomic status; one in five (22%) reported some difficulty affording their medication; and 35% lived alone. The majority reported psychological distress with 31% having moderate or severe psychological distress. While all had a GP, only 38% reported having a written GP care plan. 22% of those who needed regular help with daily tasks did not have a close friend or relative who regularly cared for them. Factors independently associated with more frequent (n=4+) relative to less frequent (n=3) admissions included having congestive heart failure (p=0.003), higher social isolation scores (p=0.040) and higher Charlson Comorbidity Index scores (p=0.049). Most respondents (61%) felt there was nothing that could have avoided their most recent admission, although some potential avoidability of admission was described around medication and health behaviours. Respondents were younger and less sick than non-respondents.ConclusionsThis study provides a detailed description of older patients with multiple chronic conditions and a history of frequent admission in rural Australia. Our results suggest that programs targeting medication use, health behaviours and social isolation may help reduce multiple hospital admissions for chronic disease.

Dataset Information

Using predicted Spanish preference to target bilingual mailings in a mail survey with telephone follow-up.

Objective

Data sources/study setting

Study design

Data collection

Principal findings

Conclusions

Publications

Using predicted Spanish preference to target bilingual mailings in a mail survey with telephone follow-up.

Similar Datasets

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