The effects of practice size on quality of care

Abstract

Review Question What is the effect of practice size on the quality of care in the primary care setting? Types of participants Studies with primary care practices, family practices, or general practices as participants will be included. Types of intervention(s)/phenomena of interest Studies using practice size as an independent variable will be included. A preliminary literature search found a few terms used synonymously with practice size. Hence, to be as inclusive in our search as possible, practice size would be defined in terms of any of the following: 1) list size (patient list size, caseload or volume per practice) 2) team size (number of physician or clinician per practice) 3) practice partnership (solo practice vs partnership practice) In this review, a “partnership practice” will be defined as a practice in any form of partnership with other practices while a “solo practice” is one not in partnership with other practices. Type of outcomes Studies measuring quality of care in terms of clinical processes, clinical outcomes, patient reported outcomes and patient satisfaction outcomes will be included.