Medical Group Practice Characteristics Influencing Inappropriate Emergency Department and Avoidable Hospitalization Rates

Abstract

The inappropriate use of emergency departments (EDs) and ambulatory care sensitive hospital admission rates by patients attributed to a national sample of 212 medical group practices is documented, and the characteristics of practices that influence these rates are identified. Hospital-owned practices have higher nonemergent and emergent primary care treatable ED rates and higher ambulatory care sensitive hospitalization rates. Practices with electronic health records have lower inappropriate ED rates but those in rural areas have significantly higher rates. Practices with lower operating costs have higher inappropriate ED and ambulatory care sensitive rates, raising questions about the costs of preventing these incidents at the medical group practice level.