Charles A. Daly

Access to oral health care: the role of federally qualified health centers in addressing disparities and expanding access.

OBJECTIVES We examined utilization, unmet need, and satisfaction with oral health services among Federally Qualified Health Center patients. We examined correlates of unmet need to guide efforts to increase access to oral health services among underserved populations. METHODS Using the 2009 Health Center Patient Survey, we performed multivariate logistic regressions to examine factors associated with access to dental care at health centers, unmet need, and patient experience. RESULTS We found no racial or ethnic disparities in access to timely oral health care among health center patients; however, uninsured patients and those whose insurance does not provide dental coverage experienced restricted access and greater unmet need. Slightly more than half of health center patients had a dental visit in the past year, but 1 in 7 reported that their most recent visit was at least 5 years ago. Among health center patients who accessed dental care at their health center, satisfaction was high. CONCLUSIONS These results underscore the critical role that health centers play in national efforts to improve oral health status and eliminate disparities in access to timely and appropriate dental services.

Reducing Disparities in Access to Primary Care and Patient Satisfaction with Care: The Role of Health Centers

This paper examined disparities in access to and satisfaction with primary care among patients of different racial/ethnic groups and insurance coverage, in health centers and the nation overall. Data came from the 2009 Health Center Patient Survey and 2009 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Study outcomes included usual source of care, type of usual source of care, satisfaction with provider office hours, and satisfaction with overall care. Health center patients were more racially and ethnically diverse than national patients, and health center patients were more likely than national patients to be uninsured or publicly insured. No significant health care disparities in access to care existed among patients from different racial/ethnic and insurance groups among health centers, unlike low-income patients nationwide or the U.S. population in general. Additional focus on the uninsured, in health centers and other health care settings nationwide, is needed to enhance satisfaction with care among these patients.

Primary Care and Public Health Activities in Select US Health Centers: Documenting Successes, Barriers, and Lessons Learned

OBJECTIVES We examined primary care and public health activities among federally funded health centers, to better understand their successes, the barriers encountered, and the lessons learned. METHODS We used qualitative and quantitative methods to collect data from 9 health centers, stratified by administrative division, urban-rural location, and race/ethnicity of patients served. Descriptive data on patient and institutional characteristics came from the Uniform Data System, which collects data from all health centers annually. We administered questionnaires and conducted phone interviews with key informants. RESULTS Health centers performed well on primary care coordination and community orientation scales and reported conducting many essential public health activities. We identified specific needs for integrating primary care and public health: (1) more funding for collaborations and for addressing the social determinants of health, (2) strong leadership to champion collaborations, (3) trust building among partners, with shared missions and clear expectations of responsibilities, and (4) alignment and standardization of data collection, analysis, and exchange. CONCLUSIONS Lessons learned from health centers should inform strategies to better integrate public health with primary care.

Racial/ethnic differences in clinical quality performance among health centers.

More than 1100 federally funded health centers provide primary and preventive care to about 20 million underserved patients in the United States. Since 2008, the Health Resources and Services Administration has implemented a clinical quality improvement initiative to measure and evaluate the quality of care across all health centers. We assessed racial/ethnic disparities in clinical quality among US health centers, and examined whether performance on quality measures varied across 3 health center characteristics. National data came from the 2009 Uniform Data System. We examined performance across 3 indicators of clinical quality: poorly controlled hypertension among adult patients, poorly controlled diabetes among adult patients, and low birth weight among newborns. We compared results for each measure across racial/ethnic groups, as well as across 3 health center characteristics: health center patient volume, duration of health center funding, and extent of managed care penetration. Non-Hispanic Asian patients had the best results among racial/ethnic groups for 2 of the 3 measures examined: lowest rates of poorly controlled diabetes (26%) and hypertension (34%). Hispanics/Latinos had similar rates of poor hypertension control compared with non-Hispanic whites (38% for both), and lower rates of low birth weight (8% vs 10%). Poor diabetes control was more prevalent among Hispanic/Latino patients than non-Hispanic white patients, but the absolute difference was small (5 percentage points). Non-Hispanic black/African American patients had statistically worse outcomes than non-Hispanic white patients, but the absolute differences were also small (2–6 percentage points, depending on outcome). Health centers with larger patient volume fared better than their counterparts with smaller volume for all racial/ethnic groups. For Hispanic/Latino patients, more established health centers compared favorably to new health centers for all 3 outcomes. Health centers with some managed care penetration did better for diabetes and hypertension control relative to health centers without managed care penetration. Compared with national rates, health centers report minimal racial/ethnic disparities in clinical outcomes. Health center characteristics are also associated with clinical outcomes. More research is needed to determine the nature of disparities after accounting for health center patient, provider, and institutional characteristics.

Primary care and public health activities in select U.S. health centers: documenting successes, barriers, and lessons learned.

PURPOSE The goal of the current study was to examine primary care and public health activities among federally funded health centers, to better understand their successes, barriers encountered, and lessons learned. METHODS Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to collect data from nine health centers, stratified by administrative division, urban-rural location, and race/ethnicity of patients served. Descriptive data on patient and institutional characteristics came from the Uniform Data System, which collects data from all health centers annually. Questionnaires were administered and phone interviews were conducted with key informants. RESULTS Health centers performed well on primary care coordination and community orientation scales and reported conducting many essential public health activities. Specific needs were identified for integrating primary care and public health: (1) more funding for collaborations and for addressing the social determinants of health, (2) strong leadership to champion collaborations, (3) trust-building among partners, with shared missions and clear expectations of responsibilities, and (4) alignment and standardization of data collection, analysis, and exchange. CONCLUSIONS Lessons learned from health centers should inform strategies to better integrate public health with primary care.

Quality-related Activities in Federally Supported Health Centers Do They Differ by Organizational Characteristics?

Recent reports suggest the need for further study of the impact of organizational characteristics on quality-related activities in health centers. To better understand these issues, a cross-sectional assessment of quality-related activities in Health Resources and Services Administration–funded health centers was conducted using a mailed questionnaire. Associations between the extent and frequency of quality-related activities and organizational characteristics, including location, size, and accreditation status, were examined. In general, the frequency and type of most quality-related activities did not vary greatly by size and location, but differed by accreditation status. The findings can be explained in part by Health Resources and Services Administration/Bureau of Primary Health Care requirements and implementation of their Accreditation Initiative.