Descriptive comparison of those who did and did not report using a walk-in clinic in the previous 12 months
| Characteristic | No. (%) of respondents* | Standardized mean difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Used walk-in clinics n = 16 166 | Did not use walk-in clinics n = 44 769 | ||
| Sex | |||
| Female | 10077 (59.7) | 25556 (55.8) | 0.08 |
| Male | 6089 (40.3) | 19 213 (44.2) | |
| Age, yr, mean ± SD | 45.1 ± 16.9 | 53.4 ± 16.8 | −0.02 |
| Age, yr | |||
| 16–39 | 5666 (38.9) | 8278 (21.8) | 0.37 |
| 40–64 | 7568 (47.5) | 21080 (50.1) | −0.05 |
| 65–84 | 2723 (12.7) | 14054 (26.1) | −0.34 |
| ≥ 85 | 209 (0.9) | 1357 (2.0) | −0.10 |
| Rurality | |||
| Large urban (RIO score 0) | 6394 (44.5) | 14521 (38.5) | 0.12 |
| Medium urban (RIO score 1–9) | 5723 (35.2) | 10183 (23.2) | 0.27 |
| Small urban (RIO score 10–39) | 3192 (16.5) | 12816 (25.4) | −0.22 |
| Rural (RIO score ≥ 40) | 857 (3.8) | 7249 (12.9) | −0.33 |
| Self-reported level of education | |||
| High school | 4071 (24.5) | 14908 (31.4) | −0.16 |
| College or bachelor’s degree | 9892 (60.7) | 24573 (55.7) | 0.10 |
| Graduate or professional degree | 2080 (14.1) | 4898 (12.0) | 0.07 |
| Missing | 123 (0.7) | 390 (0.9) | |
| Self-reported financial situation | |||
| Very comfortable | 2278 (13.7) | 7413 (17.1) | −0.09 |
| Comfortable | 9579 (60.8) | 27401 (61.2) | −0.01 |
| Tight, very tight or poor | 3864 (22.7) | 8702 (18.8) | 0.10 |
| Do not know or refused | 445 (2.8) | 1253 (2.9) | |
| Multimorbidity (having ≥ 3 chronic conditions) | |||
| Yes | 1412 (7.7) | 4427 (8.9) | −0.04 |
| No | 14754 (92.3) | 40342 (91.1) | |
| Have called or tried to call primary care physician with a medical question or concern during the day on a Monday to Friday | |||
| Yes | 9560 (57.0) | 24314 (53.9) | 0.07 |
| No | 6524 (42.5) | 20181 (45.5) | |
| Missing | 82 (0.5) | 274 (0.6) | |
| After-hours access to own primary care physician or clinic | |||
| Yes | 6500 (37.1) | 18873 (42.6) | −0.11 |
| No | 9665 (62.9) | 25884 (57.3) | |
| Missing | 1 (0) | 12 (0.1) | |
| Saw own physician or clinic on same day or next day when sick† | |||
| Yes | 3398 (36.9) | 8580 (40.3) | −0.08 |
| No | 6030 (58.9) | 12685 (54.8) | |
| Missing | 436 (4.2) | 1190 (4.9) | |
| Type of primary care models | |||
| Virtually enrolled in a fee-for-service practice | 920 (6.3) | 1662 (4.0) | 0.09 |
| Enhanced fee-for-service practice | 5829 (39.9) | 19161 (25.7) | 0.31 |
| Non-team capitation practice | 5107 (31.4) | 13351 (32.2) | −0.01 |
| Team capitation practice | 4009 (21.5) | 18982 (37.0) | −0.34 |
| Other patient enrolment models | 301 (0.9) | 1513 (1.1) | −0.02 |
| Total visits to any primary care physician over 2 years, mean ± SD | 11.6 ± 11.7 | 9.8 ± 11.1 | 0.01 |
| Total visits to any primary care physician over 2 years, median (IQR) | 9 (5–15) | 7 (4–13) | NA |
| Total visits to the usual primary care physician over 2 years, mean ± SD | 6.9 ± 8.1 | 7.3 ± 8.5 | 0 |
| Total visits to the usual primary care physician over 2 years, median (IQR) | 5 (3–9) | 5 (3–9) | NA |
| Total visits to a primary care physician other than the usual physician over 2 years, mean ± SD | 4.7 ± 6.0 | 2.5 ± 4.7 | 0.01 |
| Total visits to a primary care physician other than the usual physician over 2 years, median (IQR) | 3 (1–6) | 1 (0–3) | NA |
Note: IQR = interquartile range, NA = not applicable, RIO = Rurality Index for Ontario, SD = standard deviation.
↵* Unless indicated otherwise. Results were weighted.
↵† Variable excluded those who did not seek any medical care and those who did not see their own primary care physician or clinic (n = 32 319).