Continuity of care in private medical and dental services
The continuity of patient-doctor relationships is a key dimension of quality of care, which has been found to be associated with both better outcomes and lower costs. The purpose of this study is to examine the current state and development of continuity of care in private medical and dental services over the past 20 years and the factors associated with continuity of care. The data used is Kela's register of reimbursements for medical expenses. This data is used to calculate the average Continuity of Care Index (COCI) of patients who have used medical and dental services in different sectors over a 2-year period from 2003 to 2022. Regression analysis is used to examine the association of age, sex, share of remote contacts, and place of residence with continuity of care. The results are expected to provide new information on the continuity of care in private services, which can be used to develop Kela’s system of reimbursement for medical expenses.
Researchers
- Tero Kujanpää, Leading Researcher
- Riitta Luoto
- Mikko Nurminen
- Timo Hujanen
- Hennamari Mikkola
Project duration
1.1.2024–31.12.2024. The project has ended.
Privacy policy (in Finnish)
Project Results
The continuity of care relationships in the private healthcare sector has deteriorated between 2003 and 2022. The largest change has occurred in contact with non-specialised doctors where the two-year average of the continuity of care index (COCI) has decreased from 0.56 to 0.33.
The COCI average has remained higher for medical care provided by specialist doctors as it has, on average, decreased more moderately over the past 20 years from 0.74 to 0.62. The continuity of care among dentists has remained more stable than among doctors, with the COCI average decreasing by a smaller margin from 0.89 to 0.81. Factors associated with a weaker continuity of care in terms of care provided by non-specialised doctors were the patient’s young age, the patient being a woman, the patient living in a city with a university hospital and a high incidence of remote appointments.
