Continuity of care is good for elderly people with diabetes: Retrospective cohort study of mortality and hospitalization

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Table 2.

Characteristics of high- and low-continuity groups: N = 305.

CHARACTERISTIC	LOW-CONTINUITY GROUP (UPC INDEX LESS THAN 0.75)	HIGH-CONTINUITY GROUP (UPC INDEX 0.75 OR GREATER)	P VALUE
N (% of total)	83 (27.2)	222 (72.8)	NA
Men, %	42.2	45.5	.349
Mean (SD) age, y	75.2 (6.7)	73.2 (5.9)	.013^*
Mean (SD) no. of GP visits	27.7 (21.7)	30.7 (23.6)	.142

MEASURE OF CONTINUITY	MEAN	SD	MINIMUM	MAXIMUM	INDEX QUARTILES
MEASURE OF CONTINUITY	MEAN	SD	MINIMUM	MAXIMUM	25TH	50TH	75TH
Index score^*	0.84	0.17	0.31	1.00	0.71	0.91	0.99

OUTCOME	LOW-CONTINUITY GROUP (UPC INDEX LESS THAN 0.75)	HIGH-CONTINUITY GROUP (UPC INDEX 0.75 OR GREATER)	P VALUE (χ²)
Deceased, %	18.1	9.0	.025^*
Hospitalized, %	67.5	54.5	.027^*
UPC—usual provider continuity.