Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26787245›Full record

ArticleBMJ open2016

Unequal socioeconomic distribution of the primary care workforce: whole-population small area longitudinal study.

Miqdad Asaria, Richard Cookson, Robert Fleetcroft, Shehzad Ali

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 27 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
27citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

27 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Social and health determinants of wait times for primary care in Canada.Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien · 2025
    Article
  6. Observational
  7. Article
  8. Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme uptake, patient satisfaction, and QOF achievement: an ecological study from 2020-2023.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2025
    Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Observational
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Observational
  18. Article
  19. Investigating the impact of distance on the use of primary care extended hours.International journal of population data science · 2021
    Article
  20. Inequalities.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2020
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Miqdad AsariaCentre for Health Economics, University of York, York, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3538-4417
Richard CooksonCentre for Health Economics, University of York, York, UK.
Robert FleetcroftNorwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK.
Shehzad AliDepartment of Health Sciences, University of York, York, UK.

Funding

Department of Health 11/2004/39Department of Health SRF-2013-06-015
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveTo measure changes in socioeconomic inequality in the distribution of family physicians (general practitioners (GPs)) relative to need in England from 2004/2005 to 2013/2014.

designWhole-population small area longitudinal data linkage study.

settingEngland from 2004/2005 to 2013/2014.

participants32,482 lower layer super output areas (neighbourhoods of 1500 people on average).

main outcome measuresSlope index of inequality (SII) between the most and least deprived small areas in annual full-time equivalent GPs (FTE GPs) per 100,000 need adjusted population.

resultsIn 2004/2005, inequality in primary care supply as measured by the SII in FTE GPs was 4.2 (95% CI 3.1 to 5.3) GPs per 100,000. By 2013/2014, this SII had fallen to -0.7 (95% CI -2.5 to 1.1) GPs per 100,000. The number of FTE GPs per 100,000 serving the most deprived fifth of small areas increased over this period from 54.0 to 60.5, while increasing from 57.2 to 59.9 in the least deprived fifth, so that by the end of the study period there were more GPs per 100,000 need adjusted population in the most deprived areas than in the least deprived. The increase in GP supply in the most deprived fifth of neighbourhoods was larger in areas that received targeted investment for establishing new practices under the 'Equitable Access to Primary Medical Care'.

conclusionsThere was a substantial reduction in socioeconomic inequality in family physician supply associated with national policy. This policy may not have completely eliminated socioeconomic inequality in family physician supply since existing need adjustment formulae do not fully capture the additional burden of multimorbidity in deprived neighbourhoods. The small area approach introduced in this study can be used routinely to monitor socioeconomic inequality of access to primary care and to indicate workforce shortages in particular neighbourhoods. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0.

Indexed as

Primary Health CareEnglandGeneral PractitionersHealthcare DisparitiesHealth WorkforceHumansLongitudinal StudiesSmall-Area AnalysisSocioeconomic FactorsHealth InequalityHealth WorkforcePRIMARY CARE

Identifiers

PMID26787245
PMCPMC4735310

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.