Abstract
Purposes: The purpose of this study is to compare the differences between the solo physicians and physicians in group practice and to explore an appropriate model for the group practice.
Methods: The sample includes 9,336 primary care physicians registered in the Department of Health in November 2001. A total of 9,336 questionnaires were mailed, of which 1,821 were returned, a response rate of 19.5%. Respondents aged below 30 or over 70 were excluded. Respondents from whom data were missing were also excluded, and the number of the sampling remaining was 1,401. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze the data.
Results: The differences between the characteristics of solo physicians and physicians in group practice included age, gender, location of clinic, current ownership of clinic, and number of years of working in hospitals. The physicians in group practices thought that the appropriate group practice model was as follows; (1) 81 % preferred to work with a partner or as a sole proprietor; (2) 52% favored one to two physicians' working in a group practice; (3) 54% preferred the single-specialty practice model; (4) most respondents (63.7%) thought that the owner or co-owners should manage a group practice; (5) most also (53.3%) preferred a fixed salary plus production-based compensation; (6) most respondents (41 %) preferred to maintain Current mutual referral relationships; and (7) the top five preferred supplemental medical requirements in a group practice, as selected by primary care physicians、were a pharmacy, laboratory, ultrasound unit, ECG, and X-ray.
Conclusions: The findings of this study could help policy makers and primary care physicians to determine their most appropriate model of group practice.
Methods: The sample includes 9,336 primary care physicians registered in the Department of Health in November 2001. A total of 9,336 questionnaires were mailed, of which 1,821 were returned, a response rate of 19.5%. Respondents aged below 30 or over 70 were excluded. Respondents from whom data were missing were also excluded, and the number of the sampling remaining was 1,401. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze the data.
Results: The differences between the characteristics of solo physicians and physicians in group practice included age, gender, location of clinic, current ownership of clinic, and number of years of working in hospitals. The physicians in group practices thought that the appropriate group practice model was as follows; (1) 81 % preferred to work with a partner or as a sole proprietor; (2) 52% favored one to two physicians' working in a group practice; (3) 54% preferred the single-specialty practice model; (4) most respondents (63.7%) thought that the owner or co-owners should manage a group practice; (5) most also (53.3%) preferred a fixed salary plus production-based compensation; (6) most respondents (41 %) preferred to maintain Current mutual referral relationships; and (7) the top five preferred supplemental medical requirements in a group practice, as selected by primary care physicians、were a pharmacy, laboratory, ultrasound unit, ECG, and X-ray.
Conclusions: The findings of this study could help policy makers and primary care physicians to determine their most appropriate model of group practice.
| Translated title of the contribution | Physician Characteristics in Group Practice and the Appropriate Model of Group Practice |
|---|---|
| Original language | Chinese (Traditional) |
| Pages (from-to) | 337-348 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | 醫護科技學刊 |
| Volume | 4 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Oct 2002 |