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The effect of patient race and blood pressure control on patient-physician communication.

ABSTRACT: Racial disparities in hypertension control contribute to higher rates of cardiovascular mortality among blacks. Patient-physician communication quality is associated with better health outcomes, including blood pressure (BP) control. Both race/ethnicity and BP control may adversely affect communication.To determine whether being black and having poor BP control interact to adversely affect patient-physician communication more than either condition alone, a situation referred to as "double jeopardy."Cross-sectional study of enrollment data from a randomized controlled trial of interventions to enhance patient adherence to therapy for hypertension. Participants included 226 hypertensive patients and 39 physicians from 15 primary care practices in Baltimore, MD.Communication behaviors and visit length from coding of audiotapes.After controlling for patient and physician characteristics, blacks with uncontrolled BP have shorter visits (B = -3.9 min, p < 0.01) with less biomedical (B = -24.0, p = 0.05), psychosocial (B = -19.4, p < 0.01), and rapport-building (B = -19.5, p = 0.01) statements than whites with controlled BP. Of all communication outcomes, blacks with uncontrolled BP are only in "double jeopardy" for a patient positive affect-coders give them lower ratings than all other patients. Blacks with controlled BP also experience shorter visits and less communication with physicians than whites with controlled BP. There are no significant communication differences between the visits of whites with uncontrolled versus controlled BP.This study reveals that patient race is associated with the quality of patient-physician communication to a greater extent than BP control. Interventions that improve patient-physician communication should be tested as a strategy to reduce racial disparities in hypertension care and outcomes.

SUBMITTER: Cene CW

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2726885 | biostudies-other | 2009 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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The effect of patient race and blood pressure control on patient-physician communication.

Cené Crystal W CW Roter Debra D Carson Kathryn A KA Miller Edgar R ER Cooper Lisa A LA

Journal of general internal medicine 20090703 9

<h4>Background</h4>Racial disparities in hypertension control contribute to higher rates of cardiovascular mortality among blacks. Patient-physician communication quality is associated with better health outcomes, including blood pressure (BP) control. Both race/ethnicity and BP control may adversely affect communication.<h4>Objective</h4>To determine whether being black and having poor BP control interact to adversely affect patient-physician communication more than either condition alone, a si ...[more]

PMID: 19575270

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Project description:Importance:Elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) is the most important risk factor for premature death worldwide. However, hypertension detection and control rates continue to be suboptimal. Objective:To assess the association of education and feedback to primary care physicians with population-level SBP and hypertension control rates. Design, Setting, and Participants:This pooled series of 108 population-based cohort studies involving 283 079 patients used data from primary care centers in 2 counties (Västerbotten and Södermanland) in Sweden from 2001 to 2009. Participants were individuals aged 18 years or older who had their blood pressure (BP) measured and recorded in either county during the intervention period. All analyses were performed in February 2019. Exposures:An intervention comprising education and feedback for primary care physicians in Västerbotten County (intervention group) compared with usual care in Södermanland County (control group). Main Outcomes and Measures:Difference in mean SBP levels between counties and likelihood of hypertension control in the intervention county compared with the control county during 24 months of follow-up. Results:A total of 136 541 unique individuals (mean [SD] age at inclusion, 64.6 [16.1] years; 57.0% female; mean inclusion BP, 142/82 mm Hg) in the intervention county were compared with 146 538 individuals (mean [SD] age at inclusion, 65.7 [15.9] years; 58.3% female; mean inclusion BP, 144/80 mm Hg) in the control county. Mean SBP difference between counties during follow-up, adjusted for inclusion BP and other covariates, was 1.1 mm Hg (95% CI, 1.0-1.1 mm Hg). Hypertension control improved by 8.4 percentage points, and control was achieved in 37.8% of participants in the intervention county compared with 29.4% in the control county (adjusted odds ratio, 1.30; 95% CI, 1.29-1.31). Differences between counties increased during the intervention period and were more pronounced in participants with higher SBP at inclusion. Results were consistent across all subgroups. Conclusions and Relevance:This study suggests that SBP levels and hypertension control rates in a county population may be improved by educational approaches directed at physicians and other health care workers. Similar strategies may be adopted to reinforce the implementation of clinical practice guidelines for hypertension management.

Project description:Although previous studies suggest an association between provider burnout and suboptimal self-reported communication, no studies relate physician burnout to observed patient-physician communication behaviors.To investigate the relationship between physician burnout and observed patient-physician communication outcomes in patient-physician encounters.Longitudinal study of enrollment data from a trial of interventions to improve patient adherence to hypertension treatment.Fifteen urban community-based clinics in Baltimore, MD.Forty physicians and 235 of their adult hypertensive patients, with oversampling of ethnic minorities and poor persons. Fifty-three percent of physicians were women, and the average practice experience was 11.2 years. Among the 235 patients, 66% were women, 60% were African-American, and 90% were insured.Audiotape analysis of communication during outpatient encounters (one per patient) using the Roter Interaction Analysis System and patients' ratings of satisfaction with and trust and confidence in the physician.The median time between the physician burnout assessment and the patient encounter was 15.1 months (range 5.6-30). Multivariate analyses revealed no significant differences in physician communication based on physician burnout. However, compared with patients of low-burnout physicians, patients of high-burnout physicians gave twice as many negative rapport-building statements (incident risk ratio 2.06, 95% CI 1.58-2.86, p < 0.001). Physician burnout was not significantly associated with physician or patient affect, patient-centeredness, verbal dominance, or length of the encounter. Physician burnout was also not significantly associated with patients' ratings of their satisfaction, confidence, or trust.Physician burnout was not associated with physician communication behaviors nor with most measures of patient-centered communication. However, patients engaged in more rapport-building behaviors. These findings suggest a complex relationship between physician burnout and patient-physician communication, which should be investigated and linked to patient outcomes in future research.

Project description:BackgroundExcellent communication is a necessary component of high-quality health care. We aimed to determine whether a training module could improve patients' perceptions of physician communication behaviors, as measured by change over time in domains of patient experience scores related to physician communication.Study designWe designed a comprehensive physician-training module focused on improving specific "etiquette-based" physician communication skills through standardized simulations and physician coaching with structured feedback. We employed a quasi-experimental pre-post design, with an intervention group consisting of internal medicine hospitalists and residents and a control group consisting of surgeons. The outcome was percent "always" scores for questions related to patients' perceptions of physician communication using the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey and a Non-HCAHPS Physician-Specific Patient Experience Survey (NHPPES) administered to patients cared for by hospitalists.ResultsA total of 128 physicians participated in the simulation. Responses from 5020 patients were analyzed using HCAHPS survey data and 1990 patients using NHPPES survey data. The intercept shift, or the degree of change from pre-intervention percent "always" responses, for the HCAHPS questions of doctors "treating patients with courtesy" "explaining things in a way patients could understand," and "overall teamwork" showed no significant differences between surgical control and hospitalist intervention patients. Adjusted NHPPES percent excellent survey results increased significantly post-intervention for the questions of specified individual doctors "keeping patient informed" (adjusted intercept shift 9.9% P = 0.019), "overall teamwork" (adjusted intercept shift 11%, P = 0.037), and "using words the patient could understand" (adjusted intercept shift 14.8%, p = 0.001).ConclusionA simulation based physician communication coaching method focused on specific "etiquette-based" communication behaviors through a deliberate practice framework was not associated with significantly improved HCAHPS physician communication patient experience scores. Further research could reveal ways that this model affects patients' perceptions of physician communication relating to specific physicians or behaviors.

Project description:Despite the documented benefits of colorectal cancer screening, patient participation rates remain low. Physician recommendation has been identified as a significant predictor of screening completion.The aim of this study is to investigate how primary care physicians perceive colorectal cancer screening communication tasks, as well as to explore the form and content of actual screening discussions.The research design includes a mailed physician survey and a separate observational study in a sample of videotaped medical encounters. PARTICIPANTS AND DATA SOURCES: The participants were 270 primary care physicians who completed a mailed questionnaire (57.9% response rate) and 18 physician-patient encounters that included discussions of colorectal cancer screening.The questionnaire focused on perceived importance and accomplishment of communication tasks relevant to colorectal cancer screening. Two of the authors reviewed transcripts of videotaped physician encounters to determine whether the same communication tasks assessed in the survey were accomplished. Interrater reliability was high across all of the mutually exclusive coding categories (Kappa > .90).Physicians rated colonoscopy as the most important screening option to discuss; self-reports indicate that colonoscopy (84.8%) is more frequently mentioned than fecal occult blood test (FOBT; 49.4%), flexible sigmoidoscopy (34.1%), or computed tomography (CT) imaging (18.1%). Explaining benefits and risks, describing test procedure and frequency, eliciting patient preferences, and making a plan for screening were all viewed as very important. Self-reported accomplishment of these communication tasks was considerably higher than that observed in our separate videotape sample.Most physicians recognize and espouse the importance of recommending colorectal cancer screening to eligible patients. However, findings from both the physician survey and observational study suggest that physicians tend to overestimate the extent of discussions about screening. Interventions may be warranted to improve clinical practice.

Project description:Study objectiveTo assess blood pressure control after discontinuation of a physician-pharmacist collaborative intervention.DesignComparative analysis of data of the patients who received the intervention versus a control group from a prospective, cluster-randomized, 9-month efficacy trial and the same patients' data 18 and 27 months after completion of the trial, abstracted from their medical records.SettingFive primary care medical offices operated by a university health system.PatientsOne hundred four patients with hypertension; 65 were in the intervention group, and 39 were in the control group.Measurements and main resultsIn the prospective study, patients were randomized to receive a physician-pharmacist collaborative intervention to improve blood pressure control or to the control group. Systolic and diastolic blood pressures were measured by a research nurse at baseline and at the end of the study (9 mo later). In the current study, data were abstracted for blood pressure and blood pressure control at 18 and 27 months (9 and 18 mo, respectively, after discontinuation of the study). At baseline, mean +/- SD systolic blood pressure was 152.5 +/- 9.5 and 150.1 +/- 9.6 mm Hg in the intervention and control groups, respectively (p=0.22). At 9 months, systolic blood pressure decreased to 124.5 +/- 10.7 and 132.0 +/- 15.1 mm Hg (p=0.0038 between groups), and blood pressure was controlled in 78.5% and 48.7% (p=0.0017) of patients in the intervention and control groups, respectively. By 18 months, systolic blood pressure had deteriorated to 131.0 +/- 12.2 and 143.3 +/- 17.5 mm Hg (p<0.001), and blood pressure control rates decreased to 53.9% and 30.8% (p=0.02). By 27 months, systolic blood pressure was 131.3 +/- 13.0 and 141.2 +/- 15.8 mm Hg (p=0.0008), and blood pressure control was 55.4% and 35.9% (p=0.05).ConclusionA sustained positive effect on blood pressure control was noted up to 18 months after discontinuation of a physician-pharmacist collaborative intervention, when compared with a control group. Blood pressure control did deteriorate at a similar rate in both the intervention and control groups, but the percentage of patients with controlled blood pressure remained significantly higher in the intervention group. These results suggest that continued interventions by pharmacists may be necessary to maintain high rates of blood pressure control, especially in those patients whose blood pressure begins to increase.

Project description:BackgroundEffective communication with health care providers has been found as relevant for physical and psychological health outcomes as well as the patients' adherence. However, the validity of the findings depends on the quality of the applied measures. This study aimed to provide an overview of measures of physician-patient communication and to evaluate the methodological quality of psychometric studies and the quality of psychometric properties of the identified measures.MethodsA systematic review was performed to identify psychometrically tested instruments which measure physician-patient communication. The search strategy included three databases (EMBASE, PsycINFO, PubMed), reference and citation tracking and personal knowledge. Studies that report the psychometric properties of physician-patient communication measures were included. Two independent raters assessed the methodological quality of the selected studies with the COSMIN (COnsensus based Standards for the selection of health status Measurement INtruments) checklist. The quality of psychometric properties was evaluated with the quality criteria of Terwee and colleagues.ResultsData of 25 studies on 20 measures of physician-patient communication were extracted, mainly from primary care samples in Europe and the USA. Included studies reported a median of 3 out of the nine COSMIN criteria. Scores for internal consistency and content validity were mainly fair or poor. Reliability and structural validity were rated mainly of fair quality. Hypothesis testing scored mostly poor. The quality of psychometric properties of measures evaluated with Terwee et al.'s criteria was rated mainly intermediate or positive.DiscussionThis systematic review identified a number of measures of physician-patient communication. However, further psychometric evaluation of the measures is strongly recommended. The application of quality criteria like the COSMIN checklist could improve the methodological quality of psychometric property studies as well as the comparability of the studies' results.

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The effect of patient race and blood pressure control on patient-physician communication.

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The effect of patient race and blood pressure control on patient-physician communication.

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