Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29739778›Full record

Observational studyThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2018

Predicting declines in perceived relationship continuity using practice deprivation scores: a longitudinal study in primary care.

Louis S Levene, Richard Baker, Nicola Walker, Christopher Williams, Andrew Wilson, John Bankart

Abstract readObservational Study
In one paragraph

Observational study in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 39 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
39citing papers in PubMed, 3 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

39 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Primary care micro-teams: an international systematic review of patient and healthcare professional perspectives.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2023
    Pooled it
  2. Primary medical care continuity and patient mortality: a systematic review.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2020
    Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Implications of skill-mix change in general practice: secondary analysis of data from the GP Patient Survey.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026
    Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. What do patients and clinicians think about continuity in general practice in England? a qualitative study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026
    Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Patient characteristics and degrees of discontinuity of care in Danish general practice: a cohort study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2025
    Article
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  14. Conservative Party's legacy on the NHS.BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2024
    Article
  15. Observational
  16. Article
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  18. Locum doctors in English general practices: evidence from a national survey.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2023
    Article
  19. Continuity of care in diverse ethnic groups: a general practice record study in England.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2023
    Article
  20. 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

6 authors.

Louis S LeveneDepartment of Health Sciences, College of Life Sciences, George Davies Centre for Medicine, University of Leicester, Leicester.
Richard BakerDepartment of Health Sciences, College of Life Sciences, George Davies Centre for Medicine, University of Leicester, Leicester.
Nicola WalkerDepartment of Health Sciences, College of Life Sciences, George Davies Centre for Medicine, University of Leicester, Leicester.
Christopher WilliamsDepartment of Health Sciences, College of Life Sciences, George Davies Centre for Medicine, University of Leicester, Leicester.
Andrew WilsonDepartment of Health Sciences, College of Life Sciences, George Davies Centre for Medicine, University of Leicester, Leicester.
John BankartDepartment of Health Sciences, College of Life Sciences, George Davies Centre for Medicine, University of Leicester, Leicester.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIncreased relationship continuity in primary care is associated with better health outcomes, greater patient satisfaction, and fewer hospital admissions. Greater socioeconomic deprivation is associated with lower levels of continuity, as well as poorer health outcomes.

aimTo investigate whether deprivation scores predicted variations in the decline over time of patient-perceived relationship continuity of care, after adjustment for practice organisational and population factors. DESIGN AND

settingAn observational study in 6243 primary care practices with more than one GP, in England, using a longitudinal multilevel linear model, 2012-2017 inclusive.

methodPatient-perceived relationship continuity was calculated using two questions from the GP Patient Survey. The effect of deprivation on the linear slope of continuity over time was modelled, adjusting for nine confounding variables (practice population and organisational factors). Clustering of measurements within general practices was adjusted for by using a random intercepts and random slopes model. Descriptive statistics and univariable analyses were also undertaken.

resultsRelationship continuity declined by 27.5% between 2012 and 2017, and at all deprivation levels. Deprivation scores from 2012 did not predict variations in the decline of relationship continuity at practice level, after accounting for the effects of organisational and population confounding variables, which themselves did not predict, or weakly predicted with very small effect sizes, the decline of continuity. Cross-sectionally, continuity and deprivation were negatively correlated within each year.

conclusionThe decline in relationship continuity of care has been marked and widespread. Measures to maximise continuity will need to be feasible for individual practices with diverse population and organisational characteristics.

Indexed as

State MedicineCatchment Area, HealthContinuity of Patient CareEnglandGeneral PracticeHealthcare DisparitiesHealth Services AccessibilityHumansLongitudinal StudiesPatient SatisfactionPoverty AreasSocioeconomic Factorscontinuity of patient careprimary health caresocioeconomic factors

Identifiers

PMID29739778
PMCPMC6002014

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.