Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33568126›Full record

SynthesisInternational journal for equity in health2021

Socioeconomic inequalities in primary-care and specialist physician visits: a systematic review.

Sara Lena Lueckmann, Jens Hoebel, Julia Roick, Jenny Markert, Jacob Spallek, Olaf von dem Knesebeck, Matthias Richter

Open access · goldAbstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in International journal for equity in health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 97 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
97citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
30.1field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
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

97 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 145 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. A systematic review of causal pathways of socioeconomic inequalities in stroke.International journal of stroke : official journal of the International Stroke Society · 2026
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  12. The 'hub' model for colorectal surgery: a viable paradigm shift?Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England · 2026
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37 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

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

7 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Sara Lena LueckmannInstitute of Medical Sociology, Medical Faculty, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Str. 8, 06112, Halle (Saale), Germany. sara.lueckmann@uk-halle.de.ORCID 0000-0003-3025-8937
Jens HoebelDivision of Social Determinants of Health, Department of Epidemiology and Health Monitoring, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany.
Julia RoickInstitute of Medical Sociology, Medical Faculty, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Str. 8, 06112, Halle (Saale), Germany.
Jenny MarkertInstitute of Medical Sociology, Medical Faculty, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Str. 8, 06112, Halle (Saale), Germany.
Jacob SpallekDepartment of Public Health, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Senftenberg, Germany.
Olaf von dem KnesebeckInstitute of Medical Sociology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Matthias RichterInstitute of Medical Sociology, Medical Faculty, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Magdeburger Str. 8, 06112, Halle (Saale), Germany.
University Hospital in Halle · DEBrandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg · DERobert Koch Institute · DEUniversität Hamburg · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundUtilization of primary-care and specialist physicians seems to be associated differently with socioeconomic status (SES). This review aims to summarize and compare the evidence on socioeconomic inequalities in consulting primary-care or specialist physicians in the general adult population in high-income countries.

methodsWe carried out a systematic search across the most relevant databases (Web of Science, Medline) and included all studies, published since 2004, reporting associations between SES and utilization of primary-care and/or specialist physicians. In total, 57 studies fulfilled the eligibility criteria.

resultsMany studies found socioeconomic inequalities in physician utilization, but inequalities were more pronounced in visiting specialists than primary-care physicians. The results of the studies varied strongly according to the operationalization of utilization, namely whether a physician was visited (probability) or how often a physician was visited (frequency). For probabilities of visiting primary-care physicians predominantly no association with SES was found, but frequencies of visits were higher in the most disadvantaged. The most disadvantaged often had lower probabilities of visiting specialists, but in many studies no link was found between the number of visits and SES.

conclusionThis systematic review emphasizes that inequalities to the detriment of the most deprived is primarily a problem in the probability of visiting specialist physicians. Healthcare policy should focus first off on effective access to specialist physicians in order to tackle inequalities in healthcare. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42019123222 .

Indexed as

Healthcare DisparitiesHealth Services AccessibilityPhysiciansSocial ClassAdultHumansIncomePrimary Health CareSocioeconomic FactorsSpecializationAccess to health carePrimary health careSocial inequalitiesSocioeconomic Status

Identifiers

PMID33568126
PMCPMC7874661
OpenAlexW3126190343

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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.