Relationship between patients' perceptions of disadvantage and discrimination and listing for kidney transplantation

Barriers to evaluation and wait listing for kidney transplantation

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Many factors have been shown to be associated with ESRD patient placement on the waiting list and receipt of kidney transplantation. Our study aim was to evaluate factors and assess the interplay of patient characteristics associated with progression to transplantation in a large cohort of referred patients from a single institution.

DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS

We examined 3029 consecutive adult patients referred for transplantation from 2003 to 2008. Uni- and multivariable logistic models were used to assess factors associated with progress to transplantation including receipt of evaluations, waiting list placement, and receipt of a transplant.

RESULTS

A total of 56%, 27%, and 17% of referred patients were evaluated, were placed on the waiting list, and received a transplant over the study period, respectively. Older age, lower median income, and noncommercial insurance were associated with decreased likelihood to ascend steps to receive a transplant. There was no difference in the proportion of evaluations between African Americans (57%) and Caucasians (56%). Age-adjusted differences in waiting list placement by race were attenuated with further adjustment for income and insurance. There was no difference in the likelihood of waiting list placement between African Americans and Caucasians with commercial insurance.

CONCLUSIONS

Race/ethnicity, age, insurance status, and income are predominant factors associated with patient progress to transplantation. Disparities by race/ethnicity may be largely explained by insurance status and income, potentially suggesting that variable insurance coverage exacerbates disparities in access to transplantation in the ESRD population, despite Medicare entitlement.

Iniquities in the access to renal transplant for patients with end-stage chronic renal disease in Brazil

The objective of this present study is to analyze individual and contextual factors associated with access to renal transplant in Brazil. An observational, prospective and non-concurrent study was carried out, based on data from the National Database on renal replacement therapies in Brazil. Patients undergoing dialysis between 01/Jan/2000 and 31/Dec/2000 were included and monitored up to the point of transplant, death or until the end of the study period. Variables that were analyzed included: individual variables (age, sex, region of residence, primary renal disease, hospitalizations); and context variables concerning both the dialysis unit (level of complexity, juridical nature, hemodialysis machines and location) and the city (geographic region, location and HDI). Proportional hazard models were adjusted with hierarchical entry to identify factors associated with the risk of transplant. The results point to differentials in access according to socio-demographic, clinical, geographic and social factors, indicating that the organ allocation system has not eliminated avoidable disparities for those who compete for an organ in the nationwide waiting list.

Patient choice and equity in the British National Health Service: towards developing an alternative framework

Choice and competition have been phased into many public health systems with the aim of achieving various and potentially exclusive goals such as improving efficiency, quality and responsiveness to users' needs. Yet their use to promote equity of access as evidenced recently in the British National Health Service (the NHS) is unprecedented. Giving users the power of exit over unresponsive providers is meant to address the failures of previous policies. This paper shows that there is a potential conflict between choice and equity, in terms of both the values and the outcomes each policy is likely to produce. Using a multidisciplinary and multidimensional framework, drawn from Bourdieusian sociology, feminist theory and economics, the study highlights the implications of the simplistic and one-sided conception of individual patient choice in relation to equity. It also uses the existing evidence on the impact of market competition and choice, in the UK and elsewhere, to emphasise the importance of socio-economic and psycho-social factors, which are left out of current policy considerations.

Disparities in kidney transplant outcomes: a review

Sociocultural and socioeconomic disparities in graft survival, graft function, and patient survival in adult kidney transplant recipients are reviewed. Studies consistently document worse outcomes for black patients, patients with low income, and patients with less education, whereas better outcomes are reported in Hispanic and Asian kidney transplant recipients. However, the distinct roles of racial/ethnic versus socioeconomic factors remain unclear. Attention to potential pathways contributing to disparities has been limited to immunologic and nonimmunologic factors, for which the mechanisms have yet to be fully illuminated. Interventions to reduce disparities have focused on modifying immunosuppressant regimens. Modifying access to care and health care funding policies for immunosuppressive medication coverage also are discussed. The implementation of culturally sensitive approaches to the care of transplant candidates and recipients is promising. Future research is needed to examine the mechanisms contributing to disparities in graft survival and ultimately to intervene effectively.

Racial disparities in urologic health care

In the United States, disparities in health care delivery and access are apparent between different racial and ethnic groups. Minorities, including African Americans, often suffer disproportionately from disease compared to Caucasians. In the urologic arena, this is apparent in urologic cancer screening, treatment choices, and survival, as well as in the arena of chronic kidney disease, transplant allocation, and transplant outcomes. Latino men also seem to be affected more often by erectile dysfunction than Caucasian counterparts. Disparities such as these have been identified as a problem in the delivery of health care in the United States, and resources have been allocated to help allay the disparity. Through organizations such as the Cleveland Clinic Minority Men's Health Center, policy initiatives, and increased cultural awareness by physicians, steps can be made to reduce and eliminate health care disparities.

Racial/ethnic differences in self-reported racism and its association with cancer-related health behaviors

OBJECTIVES

We used population-based survey data to estimate the prevalence of self-reported racism across racial/ethnic groups and to evaluate the association between self-reported racism and cancer-related health behaviors.

METHODS

We used cross-sectional data from the 2003 California Health Interview Survey. Questions measured self-reported racism in general and in health care. The cancer risk behaviors we assessed were smoking, binge drinking, not walking, being overweight or obese, and not being up to date with screenings for breast, cervical, colorectal, and prostate cancers. Analyses included descriptive analyses and logistic regression.

RESULTS

Prevalences of self-reported racism varied between and within aggregate racial/ethnic groups. In adjusted analyses, general racism was associated with smoking, binge drinking, and being overweight or obese; health care racism was associated with not being up to date with screening for prostate cancer. Associations varied across racial/ethnic groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Associations between general racism and lifestyle behaviors suggest that racism is a potential stressor that may shape cancer-related health behaviors, and its impact may vary by race/ethnicity.

Sociodemographic factors and patient perceptions are associated with attitudes to kidney transplantation among haemodialysis patients

BACKGROUND

Treatment decisions made by patients with chronic kidney disease are crucial in the renal transplantation process. These decisions are influenced, amongst other factors, by attitudes towards different treatment options, which are modulated by knowledge and perceptions about the disease and its treatment and many other subjective factors. Here we study the attitude of dialysis patients to renal transplantation and the association of sociodemographic characteristics, patient perceptions and experiences with this attitude.

METHODS

In a cross-sectional study, all patients from eight dialysis units in Budapest, Hungary, who were on haemodialysis for at least 3 months were approached to complete a self-administered questionnaire. Data collected from 459 patients younger than 70 years were analysed in this manuscript.

RESULTS

Mean age of the study population was 53 +/- 12 years, 54% were male and the prevalence of diabetes was 22%. Patients with positive attitude to renal transplantation were younger (51 +/- 11 versus 58 +/- 11 years), better educated, more likely to be employed (11% versus 4%) and had prior transplantation (15% versus 7%)(P < 0.05 for all). In a multivariate model, negative patient perceptions about transplantation, negative expectations about health outcomes after transplantation and the presence of fears about the transplant surgery were associated, in addition to increasing age, with unwillingness to consider transplantation.

CONCLUSIONS

Negative attitudes to renal transplantation are associated with potentially modifiable factors. Based on this we suggest that it would be necessary to develop standardized, comprehensible patient information systems and personalized decision support to facilitate modality selection and to enable patients to make fully informed treatment decisions.

Perceived discrimination in health care and health status in a racially diverse sample

BACKGROUND

Despite the surge of recent research on the association between perceived discrimination and health-related outcomes, few studies have focused on race-based discrimination encountered in health care settings. This study examined the prevalence of such discrimination, and its association with health status, for the 3 largest race/ethnic groups in the United States.

METHODS

Data were drawn from the 2004 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey. The primary variables were perceived racial discrimination in health care and self-reported health status. Multivariable logistic regression was used to compare the prevalence of perceived discrimination for whites, African Americans, and Hispanics, and to examine the association between perceived discrimination and health status, controlling for sex, age, income, education, health care coverage, affordability of medical care, racial salience, and state.

RESULTS

Perceived discrimination was reported by 2%, 5.2%, and 10.9% of whites, Hispanics, and African Americans, respectively. Only the difference between African Americans and whites remained significant in adjusted analyses [odds ratio (OR) = 3.22, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.46-4.21]. Racial/ethnic differences in perceived discrimination depended on income, education, health care coverage, and affordability of medical care. Perceived discrimination was associated with worse health status for the overall sample (OR = 1.71, 95% CI = 1.35-2.16). Stratified analyses revealed that this relationship was significant for whites (OR = 2.00, 95% CI = 1.45-2.77) and African Americans (OR = 1.95, 95% CI = 1.39-2.73), but not for Hispanics (OR = 0.55, 95% CI = 0.24-1.22).

CONCLUSIONS

Perceived racial discrimination in health care is much more prevalent for African Americans than for whites or Hispanics. Furthermore, such discrimination is associated with worse health both for African Americans and for whites.

Racial/ethnic discrimination and health: findings from community studies

The authors review the available empirical evidence from population-based studies of the association between perceptions of racial/ethnic discrimination and health. This research indicates that discrimination is associated with multiple indicators of poorer physical and, especially, mental health status. However, the extant research does not adequately address whether and how exposure to discrimination leads to increased risk of disease. Gaps in the literature include limitations linked to measurement of discrimination, research designs, and inattention to the way in which the association between discrimination and health unfolds over the life course. Research on stress points to important directions for the future assessment of discrimination and the testing of the underlying processes and mechanisms by which discrimination can lead to changes in health.

Promoting access to renal transplantation: the role of social support networks in completing pre-transplant evaluations

BACKGROUND

Completing pre-transplant evaluations may be a greater barrier to renal transplantation for blacks with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) than for whites.

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether social support networks facilitate completing the pre-transplant evaluation and reduce racial disparities in this aspect of care.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

We surveyed 742 black and white ESRD patients in four regional networks 9 months after they initiated dialysis in 1996 and 1997. Patients reported instrumental support networks (number of friends or family to help with daily activities), emotional support networks (number of friends or family available for counsel on personal problems) and dialysis center support (support from dialysis center staff and patients). The completion of pre-transplant evaluations, including preoperative risk stratification and testing, was determined by medical record reviews.

OUTCOME MEASUREMENT

Complete renal pre-transplant evaluations.

RESULTS

Compared to patients with low levels of instrumental support, those with high levels were more likely to have complete evaluations (25% versus 46%, respectively, p < .001). In adjusted analyses, high levels of instrumental support were associated with higher rates of complete evaluations among black women (p < .05), white women (p < .05), and white men (p < .05), but not black men. Among black men, but not other groups, private insurance was a significant predictor of complete evaluations.

CONCLUSIONS

Instrumental support networks may facilitate completing renal pre-transplant evaluations. Clinical interventions that supplement instrumental support should be evaluated to improve access to renal transplantation. Access to supplemental insurance may also promote complete evaluations for black patients.

A randomized trial of a home-based educational approach to increase live donor kidney transplantation: effects in blacks and whites

BACKGROUND

Blacks are disproportionately affected by chronic kidney disease, but are far less likely to undergo live donor kidney transplantation (LDKT) than whites. We assessed the differential effectiveness in blacks and whites of a home-based (HB) LDKT educational approach.

STUDY DESIGN

A planned secondary analysis of a previously published randomized trial.

SETTING & PARTICIPANTS

132 patients (60 black, 72 white) approved for kidney transplantation at 1 kidney transplant center in the southeastern United States.

INTERVENTION

Assignment to receive either standard clinic-based (CB) transplant education (n = 69) or CB plus an HB (CB + HB) LDKT education program (n = 63). The HB education program was culturally sensitive for blacks, including using a minority health educator, brochures that highlight minority transplant recipients and donors, and discussion of race-specific outcome data.

OUTCOMES

Primary outcomes were proportions of patients with live donor inquiries, evaluations, and transplants 1 year after study participation.

MEASUREMENTS

Medical record and questionnaire data.

RESULTS

69 patients were assigned to the CB group, and 63 to the CB + HB group. After 1 year, there were 96 living donor inquiries (72.7%), 62 living donor evaluations (47.0%), and 54 LDKTs (40.9%). Patients assigned to the CB + HB group were more likely to have had living donor inquiries (odds ratio [OR], 1.7; confidence interval [CI], 1.2 to 3.0), a living donor evaluated (OR, 2.7; CI, 1.4 to 5.4), and LDKT (OR, 3.0; CI, 1.5 to 5.9). The effect was greater in blacks than whites for living donor evaluations and LDKT, but not for living donor inquiries (treatment-by-race interaction, P < 0.001, P < 0.001, and P = 0.8, respectively). Blacks in the CB + HB group were more likely to have had at least 1 living donor inquiry (51.7% versus 77.4%), at least 1 living donor evaluated (17.2% versus 48.4%), and LDKT (13.8% versus 45.2%) than those in the CB group. By comparison, whites in the CB + HB group were more likely to have had at least 1 living donor inquiry (72.5% versus 87.5%), at least 1 living donor evaluated (47.5% versus 71.9%), and LDKT (42.5% versus 59.4%) than those in the CB group.

LIMITATIONS

Single-center study with greater dropout rate in the CB + HB group.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that a culturally sensitive LDKT education program that reaches out to blacks and their social support network can overcome some barriers to LDKT in this population.

A healthy mistrust: how worldview relates to attitudes about breast cancer screening in a cross-sectional survey of low-income women

BACKGROUND

Perceived racial discrimination is one factor which may discourage ethnic minorities from using healthcare. However, existing research only partially explains why some persons do accept health promotion messages and use preventive care, while others do not. This analysis explores 1) the psychosocial characteristics of those, within disadvantaged groups, who identify their previous experiences as racially discriminatory, 2) the extent to which perceived racism is associated with broader perspectives on societal racism and powerlessness, and 3) how these views relate to disadvantaged groups' expectation of mistreatment in healthcare, feelings of mistrust, and motivation to use care.

METHODS

Using survey data from 576 African-American women, we explored the prevalence and predictors of beliefs and experiences related to social disengagement, racial discrimination, desired and actual racial concordance with medical providers, and fear of medical research. We then used both sociodemographic characteristics, and experiences and attitudes about disadvantage, to model respondents' scores on an index of personal motivation to receive breast cancer screening, measuring screening knowledge, rejection of fatalistic explanatory models of cancer, and belief in early detection, and in collaborative models of patient-provider responsibility.

RESULTS

Age was associated with lower motivation to screen, as were depressive symptoms, anomie, and fear of medical research. Motivation was low among those more comfortable with African-American providers, regardless of current provider race. However, greater awareness of societal racism positively predicted motivation, as did talking to others when experiencing discrimination. Talking was most useful for women with depressive symptoms.

CONCLUSION

Supporting the Durkheimian concepts of both anomic and altruistic suicide, both disengagement (depression, anomie, vulnerability to victimization, and discomfort with non-Black physicians) as well as over-acceptance (low awareness of discrimination in society) predict poor health maintenance attitudes in disadvantaged women. Women who recognize their connection to other African-American women, and who talk about negative experiences, appear most motivated to protect their health.

Perceived discrimination, socioeconomic disadvantage and refraining from seeking medical treatment in Sweden

STUDY OBJECTIVE

To analyse the association between perceived discrimination and refraining from seeking required medical treatment and the contribution of socioeconomic disadvantage.

DESIGN AND SETTING

Data from the Swedish National Survey of Public Health 2004 were used for analysis. Respondents were asked whether they had refrained from seeking required medical treatment during the past 3 months. Perceived discrimination was based on whether respondents reported that they had been treated in a way that made them feel humiliated (due to ethnicity/race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age or disability). The Socioeconomic Disadvantage Index (SDI) was developed to measure economic deprivation (social welfare beneficiary, being unemployed, financial crisis and lack of cash reserves).

PARTICIPANTS

Swedish population-based survey of 14,736 men and 17,115 women.

MAIN RESULTS

Both perceived discrimination and socioeconomic disadvantage were independently associated with refraining from seeking medical treatment. Experiences of frequent discrimination even without any socioeconomic disadvantage were associated with three to nine-fold increased odds for refraining from seeking medical treatment. A combination of both frequent discrimination and severe SDI was associated with a multiplicative effect on refraining from seeking medical treatment, but this effect was statistically more conclusive among women (OR = 11.6, 95% CI 8.1 to 16.6; Synergy Index (SI) = 2.0 (95% CI 1.2 to 3.2)) than among men (OR = 12, 95% CI 7.7 to 18.7; SI = 1.6 (95% CI 1.3 to 2.1)).

CONCLUSIONS

The goal of equitable access to healthcare services cannot be achieved without public health strategies that confront and tackle discrimination in society and specifically in the healthcare setting.

A systematic review of barriers in access to renal transplantation among African Americans in the United States

BACKGROUND

African-American patients with end-stage renal disease are less likely than white patients to undergo renal transplantation. The development of strategies to address this disparity requires an evidence-based understanding of the barriers that impede access to renal transplantation among African Americans in the United States.

METHODS

In September 2005, we searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, and CENTRAL for articles that identified the barriers that impeded African Americans' access to renal transplantation. Two reviewers independently extracted relevant data from the included studies. Barriers were broadly divided under two categories: (i) patient-related barriers; and (ii) healthcare-related barriers.

RESULTS

We obtained 76 potentially relevant articles of which 11 studies were included in the final review. Several patient-related barriers--personal and cultural beliefs about transplantation, lower socioeconomic status and levels of education, and healthcare-related barriers--physician perception about survival of African Americans post-transplantation, inadequate transplant work-up despite being referred, and HLA-mismatching were identified at different stages of the transplantation process. Personal and cultural beliefs of African-American patients were consistently identified as patient-related barriers among several studies. Physicians' perception about post-transplantation survival of African Americans was the most commonly identified healthcare-related barrier.

CONCLUSIONS

A wide spectrum of patient-related barriers including their personal and cultural beliefs about transplantation and several healthcare-related barriers at different stages of the transplant process impedes access to renal transplantation among African Americans in the United States. A multisectoral approach focusing on these barriers needs to be evaluated to reduce disparities in renal transplantation in the United States.

Self-reported discrimination and mental health status among African descendants, Mexican Americans, and other Latinos in the New Hampshire REACH 2010 Initiative: the added dimension of immigration

OBJECTIVES

We examined whether self-reported racial discrimination was associated with mental health status and whether this association varied with race/ethnicity or immigration status.

METHODS

We performed secondary analysis of a community intervention conducted in 2002 and 2003 for the New Hampshire Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health 2010 Initiative, surveying African descendants, Mexican Americans, and other Latinos. We assessed mental health status with the Mental Component Summary (MCS12) of the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 12, and measured discrimination with questions related to respondents' ability to achieve goals, discomfort/anger at treatment by others, and access to quality health care.

RESULTS

Self-reported discrimination was associated with a lower MCS12 score. Additionally, the strength of the association between self-reported health care discrimination and lower MCS12 score was strongest for African descendants, then Mexican Americans, then other Latinos. These patterns may be explained by differences in how long a respondent has lived in the United States. Furthermore, the association of health care discrimination with lower MCS12 was weaker for recent immigrants.

CONCLUSIONS

Discrimination may be an important predictor of poor mental health status among Black and Latino immigrants. Previous findings of decreasing mental health status as immigrants acculturate might partly be related to experiences with racial discrimination.

Prevalence and correlates of perceived societal racism in older African-American adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Although experiences of racism in day-to-day life may affect minority patients' interaction with the health system and may influence health outcomes, little is known about these experiences in patients with chronic diseases. The goal of this study was to explore the frequency and correlates of perceived societal racism in 42 African Americans aged 50 and older with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Twenty-seven items of the McNeilly Perceived Racism Scale were used to assess exposure to racist incidents in employment and public domains and emotional and coping responses to perceived racism in general. Mean age was 62, 71% were women, and more than half rated their health as fair/poor (55%). Overall, 95.2% of the participants reported at least some exposure to perceived societal racism. Higher mean lifetime exposure to societal racism, based on summary scores on the perceived racism scale, was reported by men (35.0+/-19.1) than women (19.7+/-14.4) (P<.01) and by those with higher household income (30.7+/-17.3) than those with lower household income (18.6+/-15.1) (P<.05). Greater passive coping (e.g., "avoiding it," "ignoring it") was associated with being female and having lower household income and fair/poor self-rated health. The findings that perception of racism and a range of emotional and coping responses were common in older African-American patients attending two diabetes clinics suggest that physicians and other healthcare providers may need to be more aware of patients' day-to-day experiences of societal racism and the influence these experiences may have on patient trust in the medical system and their adherence to medical advice or engagement in self-management of their chronic conditions.

Parents’ Trust in Their Child’s Physician: Using an Adapted Trust in Physician Scale

OBJECTIVES

To assess the performance of the Pediatric Trust in Physician Scale (Pedi-TiPS) that refers to a child's physician and is a modified version of the Trust in Physician Scale (TiPS), and to explore the association of trust to demographic variables.

METHODS

We performed a cross-sectional survey of parents in pediatric specialty and primary care sites. Parents completed an anonymous questionnaire that included the Pedi-TiPS. Our main outcome variable was total Pedi-TiPS score (higher scores = higher trust). Reliability was determined by Cronbach's alpha. Bivariate comparisons and linear regression modeling explored potential associations between demographic variables and total score.

RESULTS

Five hundred twenty-six parents completed surveys (73% response rate). The mean total score was 45.4 (SD 6), with good internal consistency (alpha = .84). In bivariate analysis, lower scores were associated with being a father (P = 0.03), older parent age (P = 0.02), private insurance status (P < 0.01), parent education greater than high school (P = 0.04), and not having a child age <3 years (P = 0.03). In a regression model adjusted for other factors, parents who were either African American (P = 0.05), or "other" race (P < 0.01), parents with private insurance (P = 0.02), and parents who had no children <3 years of age (P = 0.04) had lower trust.

CONCLUSIONS

The Pedi-TiPS has properties similar to the original instrument. We found associations between trust and demographic factors that should be confirmed with further studies.

Health disparities in transplantation: focus on the complexity and challenge of renal transplantation in African Americans

The field of renal transplantation has grown exponentially as a result of a greater understanding of the immune system and the advent of numerous immunosuppressive agents. Although African Americans and whites have benefited from these advances, equivalent long-term success eludes African Americans who are disadvantaged in gaining access to renal transplantation. This review summarizes the obstacles for African Americans to end-stage renal disease(ESRD) care, focusing on transplantation. Factors that predispose African Americans for ESRD, impede this ethnic group from timely transplantation, and negatively influence graft survival are examined. Possible solutions to these persistent problems are offered.

Access to Quality: Evaluation of the Allocation of Deceased Donor Kidneys for Transplantation

Disparities in both access to the kidney transplant waiting list and waiting times for transplant candidates have been extensively documented with regard to ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic factors, and region. However, the issue of access to equivalent quality organs has garnered less attention. The principal aim of this study was to determine whether certain patient populations were more likely to receive lower quality organs. This was a retrospective cohort study of all deceased-donor adult renal transplant recipients in the United States from 1996 to 2002 (n = 45,832). Using previously reported categorization of donor quality (I to V), the propensity of transplant recipients to receive lower-quality kidneys in a cumulative logit model was evaluated. Older patients were progressively more likely to receive lower-quality organs (age > or = 65 yr, odds ratio [OR] = 2.1, P < 0.01) relative to recipients aged 18 to 24 yr. African American and Asian recipients had a greater likelihood of receiving lower-quality organs relative to non-Hispanic Caucasians. Regional allocation networks were highly variable with regard to donor quality. Neither recipient gender (OR = 1.00, P = 0.81) nor patient's primary diagnosis were associated with donor quality. Findings suggest that disparities in the quality of deceased donor kidneys to transplant recipients exist among certain patient groups that have previously documented access barriers. The extent to which these disparities are in line with broad policies of equity and potentially modifiable will have to be examined in the context of allocation policy.

Perceived discrimination and reported delay of pharmacy prescriptions and medical tests

BACKGROUND

Access to health care varies according to a person's race and ethnicity. Delaying treatment is one measure of access with important health consequences.

OBJECTIVE

Determine whether perceptions of unfair treatment because of race or ethnicity are associated with reported treatment delays, controlling for economic constraints, self-reported health, depression, and demographics.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional, observational study.

PARTICIPANTS

A randomly selected community sample of 181 blacks, 148 Latinos, and 193 whites in Durham County, NC.

MEASUREMENTS

A phone survey conducted in 2002 to assess discrimination, trust in medical care, quality of care, and access to care. Treatment delays were measured by whether or not a person reported delaying or forgoing filling a prescription and delaying or forgoing having a medical test/treatment in the past 12 months. Perceived discrimination was measured as unfair treatment in health care and as racism in local health care institutions.

RESULTS

The odds of delaying filling prescriptions were significantly higher (odds ratio (OR)=2.02) for persons who perceived unfair treatment, whereas the odds of delaying tests or treatments were significantly higher (OR=2.42) for persons who thought racism was a problem in health care locally. People with self-reported depression and people who reported not working had greater odds of delaying both types of care.

CONCLUSIONS

A prospective cohort study with both personal and macro measures of discrimination, as well as more refined measures of treatment delays, would help us better understand the relationship between perceived discrimination and treatment delays.

Racial disparities in the optimal delivery of chronic kidney disease care

This article provides evidence that the current and growing burden of CKD in racial and ethnic minority populations is likely to be multifactorial involving the interplay of biologic, clinical, social, and behavioral determinants. To eliminate these disparities, crafting successful solutions requires more attention to the constellation of contributing factors not only by specialists, primary care physicians, and other health care providers involved in CKD care, but also clinical and behavioral scientists, payers of health care, and patients.

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation among patients with leukemia of all ages in Texas

BACKGROUND

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is an effective but expensive medical procedure to which some ethnic minorities, the elderly, and those without insurance have been shown to have limited access. The purpose of the current study was to determine whether socioeconomic factors were associated with HSCT usage rates in patients with leukemia.

METHODS

The authors identified 6574 patients with acute lymphocytic leukemia, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, acute myelogenous leukemia, chronic myelogenous leukemia, or other leukemias from the 1999 Texas Hospital Inpatient Discharge Public Use Data File. Of these patients, 1604 received an autologous or allogeneic HSCT. The authors assessed patients' ethnicity, payer status, age, gender, and comorbid medical conditions. Logistic regression was used to control for patient characteristics and to evaluate associations among payer status, ethnicity, and HSCT use. P < or = 0.05 indicated statistical significance.

RESULTS

Patients who self-paid had the highest rate of HSCT use in all age groups (32%; P < or = 0.01) and in the adult group (36%; P = 0.11). Elderly patients with Medicare had a low rate of HSCT use (17%; P = 0.13). Logistic regression showed no statistically significant associations between payer status or ethnicity and HSCT use. However, elderly women were significantly less likely to undergo HSCT than elderly men (odds ratio, 0.34; P < or = 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

The lack of statistically significant differences in HSCT use among adult patients with leukemia was surprising because previous studies had shown differences in HSCT by ethnicity and insurance.

Environmental health disparities: a framework integrating psychosocial and environmental concepts

Although it is often acknowledged that social and environmental factors interact to produce racial and ethnic environmental health disparities, it is still unclear how this occurs. Despite continued controversy, the environmental justice movement has provided some insight by suggesting that disadvantaged communities face greater likelihood of exposure to ambient hazards. The exposure-disease paradigm has long suggested that differential "vulnerability" may modify the effects of toxicants on biological systems. However, relatively little work has been done to specify whether racial and ethnic minorities may have greater vulnerability than do majority populations and, further, what these vulnerabilities may be. We suggest that psychosocial stress may be the vulnerability factor that links social conditions with environmental hazards. Psychosocial stress can lead to acute and chronic changes in the functioning of body systems (e.g., immune) and also lead directly to illness. In this article we present a multidisciplinary framework integrating these ideas. We also argue that residential segregation leads to differential experiences of community stress, exposure to pollutants, and access to community resources. When not counterbalanced by resources, stressors may lead to heightened vulnerability to environmental hazards.

Society's choice: the tradeoff between efficacy and equity and the lives at stake

Society understands that racial and ethnic minorities experience inferior medical care and health status, but may not appreciate the seriousness of the problem. Each year the nation spends billions of dollars to perfect the "technology" of health care (e.g., development of new drugs) and modernize delivery systems, thereby saving thousands of lives. Correcting disparities in care, however, would avert five times as many deaths. If policymakers adhered to the goal of optimizing population health, greater priority would go to resolving disparities than to refining technology, but reverse priorities prevail. Adverse socioeconomic conditions-chief among the many causes of disparities-could be eased through bold socioeconomic reforms. Society has the resources to enable the disadvantaged to attain better health but pursues other priorities.

The Association between Race and Attitudes about Predictive Genetic Testing

Objective: To investigate differences in attitudes about predictive genetic testing for cancer risk between African-American and Caucasian residents of the city of Philadelphia. Methods: Cross-sectional survey of awareness of and attitudes about predictive genetic testing, using an instrument developed through focus groups with the general public, literature review, and expert opinion. Setting: Municipal County Courthouse of Philadelphia. Respondents: Male and female adults waiting to be assigned to jury duty. Results: Of the 430 respondents, 43% (170) were African-American and 45% (181) Caucasian. Awareness of predictive genetic testing was higher among Caucasians (72%) than African-Americans (49%). After adjustment for age, gender, and educational attainment, African-Americans were more likely to report that the government would use genetic tests to label groups as inferior, and less likely to endorse the potential health benefits of testing, including “help my doctor manage my health care,” “help me change my lifestyle,” and “help scientists find cures for diseases.” These associations remained if the sample was restricted to participants who had heard of genetic testing before the survey. Conclusions: In the city of Philadelphia, awareness of and attitudes about predictive genetic testing for cancer risk differ by race, with lower awareness, less belief in the potential benefits of testing, and more concern about racial discrimination from genetic testing among African-Americans than Caucasians. These differences may result in disparities in the uptake of predictive genetic testing in the future.

Racial/ethnic discrimination and health: findings from community studies

The authors review the available empirical evidence from population-based studies of the association between perceptions of racial/ethnic discrimination and health. This research indicates that discrimination is associated with multiple indicators of poorer physical and, especially, mental health status. However, the extant research does not adequately address whether and how exposure to discrimination leads to increased risk of disease. Gaps in the literature include limitations linked to measurement of discrimination, research designs, and inattention to the way in which the association between discrimination and health unfolds over the life course. Research on stress points to important directions for the future assessment of discrimination and the testing of the underlying processes and mechanisms by which discrimination can lead to changes in health.

Healthcare system interventions for inequality in quality: corrective action through evidence-based medicine

Racial differences in the use of diagnostic and therapeutic services have an impact on outcomes in patients with chronic kidney disease. Important contributors to these racial disparities are inadequate insurance, poor access to health services' networks, and overt prejudice or subconscious bias. The use of an appropriate dose of hemodialysis is a fundamental health intervention for end-stage renal disease, which can act as a measure of the adequacy of healthcare provision. When the dose of hemodialysis was analyzed by race, the greatest deficiency in care was observed for African Americans, who had a 60% greater likelihood of receiving inadequate dialysis compared with whites. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have developed and implemented evidence-based clinical practice guidelines, designed to improve the services provided by the renal community. This approach positively impacted on dialysis doses received by patients, such that between 1993 and 1997, the percentage of patients receiving a benchmark urea reduction ratio (URR) > or = 65% increased from 43% in 1993 to 72% in 1997. However, the most dramatic improvement was seen among African Americans who had a 92% increase in the proportion of patients achieving a URR > or = 65%. Rather than focusing on who is treated, processes should be adopted to focus on how patients are treated. Increasing the use of evidence-based practices offers strategies aimed at assuring equal treatment for all and encompasses physician accountability, without the need for specific race-based intervention programs.