Study population, sampling, response rates, and respondent subgroups
| DESCRIPTIONS | 2007 | 2010 | 2013 | 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Study population | ||||
| WPCN catchment population,* N | 71 864 | 77 148 | 82 707 | 88 892 |
| WPCN family practice clinics, N | 6 | 7 | 7 | 10 |
| WPCN family physicians, N | 35 | 43 | 50 | 45 |
| WPCN family practice panel (ie, patients attached to WPCN-member family practice clinics),† N | 49 377 | 53 396 | 61 637 | 61 611 |
| Age,† % | ||||
| • 0–19 y | 29.60 | 26.90 | 26.50 | 26.10 |
| • 20–64 y | 61.30 | 62.60 | 62.20 | 61.60 |
| • ≥ 65 y | 9.70 | 10.40 | 11.30 | 12.30 |
| Male sex,† % | 49.60 | 50.10 | 49.30 | 50.10 |
| Sampling | ||||
| Target sample size for surveys, N | 1000 | 1000 | 1000 | 1800 |
| Survey results | ||||
| Response rate, % | 64.59 | 45.56 | 54.90 | 37.67 |
| Completed surveys—respondent sample size, N | 896 | 904 | 1000 | 1800 |
| Respondent subgroup | ||||
| WPCN users,‡ n (%) | 832 (92.86) | 717 (79.31) | 861 (86.10) | 1676 (93.11) |
| Unattached,§ n (%) | 35 (3.91) | 21 (2.31) | 20 (2.00) | 35 (1.94) |
| WPCN nonusers,‖ n (%) | 28 (3.13) | 160 (17.7) | 119 (11.90) | 89 (4.94) |
| Other (do not know or cannot provide), n (%) | 1 (0.11) | 6 (0.66) | 0 (0.00) | 0 (0.00) |
WPCN—WestView Primary Care Network,
↵* Population of Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, and Parkland County in Alberta (Alberta Health Services Department of Population Health Surveillance and Reporting, written communication, 2018).
↵† These data come from WPCN administrative records based on data provided by Alberta Health semi-annual payment reports to WPCN 2007–2016 (unpublished data). WPCN panel refers to the total number of Albertans informally enrolled to member physicians of the WPCN per Alberta Health proxy attachment methodology.
↵‡ WPCN users refers to respondents who had visited a WPCN-member physician or clinic at least once in the previous 18 months and who had named a WPCN-member physician as their family doctor.
↵§ Unattached refers to respondents who reported having no family doctor.
↵‖ WPCN nonusers refers to respondents naming a family doctor who was not a member physician of WPCN. This group was excluded from analyses in this study.