Baseline characteristics of cohort participants
| Characteristic | Without family physician n = 4899 (40.7% of total population) | With family physician n = 7134 (59.3% of total population) | Standardized difference | Total population n = 12 033 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demographic factors | ||||
| Age, yr | ||||
| Mean (SD) | 76.96 (7.62) | 77.25 (7.63) | 0.04 | 77.1 (7.6) |
| Median (IQR) | 77 (71–82) | 77 (71–83) | 0.04 | 77 (71–83) |
| Sex: male, no. (%) | 2459 (50.2) | 3207 (45.0) | 0.11 | 5666 (47.1) |
| Rural, no. (%) | 1061 (21.7) | 958 (13.4) | 0.22 | 2019 (16.8) |
| Income quintile, no. (%) | ||||
| 1 (lowest) | 1334 (27.2) | 1653 (23.2) | 0.09 | 2987 (24.8) |
| 2 | 925 (18.9) | 1388 (19.5) | 0.01 | 2313 (19.2) |
| 3 | 1037 (21.2) | 1601 (22.4) | 0.03 | 2638 (21.9) |
| 4 | 855 (17.5) | 1425 (20.0) | 0.06 | 2280 (18.9) |
| 5 (highest) | 700 (14.3) | 1032 (14.5) | 0.01 | 1732 (14.4) |
| Missing | 48 (1.0) | 35 (0.5) | 0.06 | 83 (0.7) |
| Patient LHIN: North West LHIN, no. (%) | 4785 (97.7) | 6992 (98.0) | 0.02 | 11 777 (97.9) |
| Past medical history | ||||
| Charlson Comorbidity Index score, no. (%) | ||||
| 0 | 1641 (33.5) | 2739 (38.4) | 0.10 | 4380 (36.4) |
| 1 | 1349 (27.5) | 1874 (26.3) | 0.03 | 3223 (26.8) |
| 2 | 771 (15.7) | 1106 (15.5) | 0.01 | 1877 (15.6) |
| ≥ 3 | 1138 (23.2) | 1415 (19.8) | 0.08 | 2553 (21.2) |
| Emergency department visits in the year before index admission | ||||
| Mean (SD) | 1.73 (3.15) | 1.42 (2.72) | 0.11 | 1.55 (2.91) |
| Median (IQR) | 1 (0.2) | 1 (0–2) | 0.10 | 1 (0–2) |
| All physician visits in the year before index admission | ||||
| Mean (SD) | 20.37 (21.55) | 19.67 (16.30) | 0.04 | 19.96 (18.62) |
| Median (IQR) | 16 (6–27) | 16 (9–25) | 0.11 | 15 (8–26) |
| During index admission | ||||
| Admission category of index admission, no. (%) | ||||
| Elective | 96 (2.0) | 147 (2.1) | 0.01 | 243 (2.0) |
| Urgent | 3664 (74.8) | 5696 (78.4) | 0.09 | 9260 (77.0) |
| Transfer | 1139 (23.2) | 1391 (19.5) | 0.09 | 2530 (21.0) |
| Length of stay of index admission, d | ||||
| Mean (SD) | 10.7 (18.0) | 9.89 (17.3) | 0.05 | 10.2 (17.6) |
| Median (IQR) | 6 (3–12) | 6 (3–11) | 0.10 | 6 (3–12) |
| ICU stay during index admission, no. (%) | 559 (11.4) | 758 (10.6) | 0.03 | 1317 (10.9) |
| Outcomes | ||||
| In-hospital mortality, no. (%) | 390 (8.0) | 356 (5.0%) | 0.12 | 746 (6.2) |
| Mortality, 1 yr after discharge, no. (%) | 714/4509 (15.8) | 899/6778 (13.3) | 0.07 | 1613/11 287 (14.3) |
| Readmission, 1 yr after discharge, no. (%) | 2164/4509 (48.0) | 2816/6778 (41.5) | 0.13 | 4980/11 287 (44.1) |
Note: ICU = intensive care unit, IQR = interquartile range, LHIN = Local Health Integration Network, SD = standard deviation.