AGE-GENDER REGISTRY STUDY

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PROS Age-Gender Registry Study

PROS Pearls:

* This study estimated (1) the average number of patients-per-practitioner in the Pediatric Research in Office Settings (PROS) network; (2) the total number of active patients cared for in the network; and (3) the age and sex distribution of patients seen in pediatric practice.

* Eighty-nine practices in 31 states with 373 PROS practitioners cared for an estimated 529,513 active patients (50.7% male) from these early 1990s data. Using current enrollment figures of over 1,500 PROS practitioners, the total number of active patients in the PROS network is estimated at 2.25 million children.

* Each practitioner cared for an average of 1,546 patients. The number of patients per practitioner was significantly higher in less populated areas (1,915) and in solo practices (2,097). The average number of patients-per-practitioner derived from these private practice data is in line with HMO-based estimates.

* Pediatric practitioners predominantly serve younger children. Children aged twelve years and under comprised 81% of patients seen by PROS practitioners, and over half of the children were six years of age or younger.

* Before age five, males accounted for a slightly but significantly higher number of practice patients, whereas, after age 14, females comprised a significantly larger proportion of practice patients.

* These data provide the only current national estimates of the size and age-sex composition of independent pediatric practices, and can help pediatricians and health services researchers plan for the future delivery of health care to children.

The study protocol asked practices to enumerate the number of patients visiting the practice during the two-year period January 1, 1991 through December 31, 1992. Patients making multiple visits were counted only once, resulting in a patient count, rather than a visit count. The unit of data collection for the study was the entire practice, not the practitioner. Age-sex registers were completed using computer billing records or chart sampling methods. To count a patient as active or visiting the practice, both methods required documentation of physical presence of the patient in the office. No phone contacts were included. This manuscript was published in the January 1999 issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

The citation and link to the manuscript follows below:

Bocian AB, Wasserman RC, Slora EJ, Kessel D, Miller R. The size and age-sex distribution of pediatric practice: A study from Pediatric Research in Office Settings (PROS). Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine 1999; 153: 9-14.

Core support for the PROS network is provided by a grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration Maternal and Child Health Bureau

Pediatric Research in Office Settings (PROS)
American Academy of Pediatrics
141 Northwest Point Blvd
PO Box 927
Elk Grove Village, IL 60009-0927
800/433-9016, ext. 7623

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PROS Age-Gender Registry Study

Pediatric Research in Office Settings (PROS) American Academy of Pediatrics 141 Northwest Point Blvd PO Box 927 Elk Grove Village, IL 60009-0927 800/433-9016, ext. 7623

Pediatric Research in Office Settings (PROS)
American Academy of Pediatrics
141 Northwest Point Blvd
PO Box 927
Elk Grove Village, IL 60009-0927
800/433-9016, ext. 7623