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Preliminary evidence on retention rates of primary care physicians in rural and urban areas.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Horner, RD; Samsa, GP; Ricketts, TC
Published in: Med Care
July 1993

The primary study objectives were to 1) determine how many physicians entered primary care practice in rural and urban counties of North Carolina in the 1981 to 1989 period and 2) estimate their length of tenure in these areas. The secondary objective was to identify the physician's demographic, training, and practice characteristics that influence geographic location of practice and length of tenure. A cohort of 1,947 physicians was identified from the North Carolina Board of Medical Examiners database, which included all active, nonfederal primary care physicians who began their initial practice in North Carolina in 1981 or later. The primary outcome was time in practice in a given rural or urban county. Selected data on physician demographic, training and practice characteristics were also available in the database. Approximately one third of physicians beginning their initial North Carolina practice selected a rural county for the location. Almost half of these primary care physicians were still in the county of their initial practice in 1989. An additional 20% of these physicians had changed practice location within the State, of which half chose a similar type of county to that of their initial practice. Length of tenure was similar across geographic locations of the medical practice, with the average length of tenure being 4.6 and 4.4 years among physicians in rural and urban counties, respectively. The strongest predictors of tenure were practice organizational characteristics with physicians in either an office-based solo practice or partnership having longer tenures.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Duke Scholars

Published In

Med Care

DOI

ISSN

0025-7079

Publication Date

July 1993

Volume

31

Issue

7

Start / End Page

640 / 648

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Urban Population
  • Time Factors
  • Rural Population
  • Professional Practice Location
  • Primary Health Care
  • Physicians, Family
  • North Carolina
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Health Policy & Services
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
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Horner, R. D., Samsa, G. P., & Ricketts, T. C. (1993). Preliminary evidence on retention rates of primary care physicians in rural and urban areas. Med Care, 31(7), 640–648. https://doi.org/10.1097/00005650-199307000-00006
Horner, R. D., G. P. Samsa, and T. C. Ricketts. “Preliminary evidence on retention rates of primary care physicians in rural and urban areas.Med Care 31, no. 7 (July 1993): 640–48. https://doi.org/10.1097/00005650-199307000-00006.
Horner RD, Samsa GP, Ricketts TC. Preliminary evidence on retention rates of primary care physicians in rural and urban areas. Med Care. 1993 Jul;31(7):640–8.
Horner, R. D., et al. “Preliminary evidence on retention rates of primary care physicians in rural and urban areas.Med Care, vol. 31, no. 7, July 1993, pp. 640–48. Pubmed, doi:10.1097/00005650-199307000-00006.
Horner RD, Samsa GP, Ricketts TC. Preliminary evidence on retention rates of primary care physicians in rural and urban areas. Med Care. 1993 Jul;31(7):640–648.

Published In

Med Care

DOI

ISSN

0025-7079

Publication Date

July 1993

Volume

31

Issue

7

Start / End Page

640 / 648

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Urban Population
  • Time Factors
  • Rural Population
  • Professional Practice Location
  • Primary Health Care
  • Physicians, Family
  • North Carolina
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Health Policy & Services