Patient-Centered Primary Care Provider Communication and Emergency Room Visits by Medicaid Patients in the United States

Abstract

Ineffective primary care provider (PCP) communication may contribute to the overuse of emergency room (ER) care in the United States. We examined the relationship between PCP communication and ER visits within a Medicaid patient population using 2022 Health Center Patient Survey data collected by the US Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Our sample was 1807 Medicaid patients who had used HRSA-funded health centers for at least 12 months. Our predictors were the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems communication items. Our outcome was the number of ER visits (categorized into three levels) during the previous year. Using ordinal logistic regression, we found that patients whose PCPs always knew important information about their medical history and who always received helpful service from staff had 24% and 20% lower odds of using ER care, respectively. Patients who had seen their PCP for at least 5 years had 37% lower odds of using ER care. Effective PCP and staff communication and improved continuity of care can reduce unnecessary ER visits while improving quality and reducing healthcare cost.