ArticleEnvironmental health : a global access science source2011
Air pollution and general practitioner access and utilization: a population based study in Sarnia, 'Chemical Valley,' Ontario.
Article in Environmental health : a global access science source, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 24 citations in OpenAlex.
- Environmental factors shaping cancer outcomes in Alabama: A scoping review.Journal of cancer survivorship : research and practice · 2026Review
- Interactive effects of maternal exposure to chemical fertilizer and socio-economic status on the risk of low birth weight.BMC public health · 2022Article
- Association between air pollution and general outpatient clinic consultations for upper respiratory tract infections in Hong Kong.PloS one · 2014Article
- Extricating sex and gender in air pollution research: a community-based study on cardinal symptoms of exposure.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2013Article
- Associations between self-reported odour annoyance and volatile organic compounds in 'Chemical Valley', Sarnia, Ontario.Environmental monitoring and assessment · 2013Article
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundHealth impacts of poor environmental quality have been identified in studies around the world and in Canada. While many of the studies have identified associations between air pollution and mortality or morbidity, few have focused on the role of health care as a potential moderator of impacts. This study assessed the determinants of health care access and utilization in the context of ambient air pollution in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.
methodsResidents of Sarnia participated in a Community Health Study administered by phone, while several ambient air pollutants including nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2) and the volatile organic compounds benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, mp- and o-xylene (BTEX) were monitored across the city. Land Use Regression models were used to estimate individual exposures to the measured pollutants and logistic regression models were utilized to assess the relative influence of environmental, socioeconomic and health related covariates on general practitioner access and utilization outcomes.
resultsThe results show that general practitioner use increased with levels of exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2- Odds Ratio [OR]: 1.16, p < 0.05) and sulphur dioxide (SO2- OR: 1.61, p < 0.05). Low household income was a stronger predictor of having no family doctor in areas exposed to high concentrations of NO2 and SO2. Respondents without regular care living in high pollution areas were also more likely to report travelling or waiting for care in excess of 20 minutes (OR: 3.28, p < 0.05) than their low exposure counterparts (OR: 1.11, p > 0.05).
conclusionsThis study provides evidence for inequitable health care access and utilization in Sarnia, with particular relevance to its situation as a sentinel high exposure environment. Levels of exposure to pollution appears to influence utilization of health care services, but poor access to primary health care services additionally burden certain groups in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.
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