Characteristics of patients in the fee-for-service and salaried groups during study period 1 (Jan. 1, 2001–Mar. 31, 2004)*
| Characteristic | Fee-for-service, no. (%) of patients† | Salaried, no. (%) of patients† | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before fee change 1 n = 197 | After fee change 1 n = 325 | Before fee change 1 n = 124 | After fee change 1 n = 233 | |
| No. of months | 15 | 24 | 15 | 24 |
| Age, yr, mean ± SD‡ | 62.6 ± 15.9 | 64.6 ± 15.7 | 62.7 ± 15.8 | 59.5 ± 16.1 |
| Female sex | 88 (44.7) | 154 (47.4) | 51 (41.1) | 98 (42.1) |
| Income quintile§ | ||||
| 1 (lowest) | 53 (26.9) | 72 (22.2) | 34 (27.4) | 64 (27.5) |
| 2 | 36 (18.3) | 73 (22.5) | 27 (21.8) | 41 (17.6) |
| 3 | 33 (16.8) | 60 (18.5) | 17 (13.7) | 49 (21.0) |
| 4 | 30 (15.2) | 46 (14.2) | 25 (20.2) | 38 (16.3) |
| 5 (highest) | 38 (19.3) | 54 (16.6) | 14 (11.3) | 28 (12.0) |
| Unknown¶ | 7 (3.6) | 20 (6.2) | 7 (5.6) | 13 (5.6) |
| Comorbidities | ||||
| Alcohol use disorder | 14 (7.1) | 15 (4.6) | 3 (2.4) | 14 (6.0) |
| Cancer, nonmetastatic | 14 (7.1) | 16 (4.9) | 5 (4.0) | 11 (4.7) |
| Chronic heart failure‡ | 79 (40.1) | 148 (45.5) | 40 (32.3) | 82 (35.2) |
| Chronic pulmonary disease‡ | 45 (22.8) | 113 (34.8)** | 37 (29.8) | 62 (26.6) |
| Dementia | 4 (2.0) | 10 (3.1) | 4 (3.2) | 7 (3.0) |
| Diabetes | 115 (58.4) | 183 (56.3) | 74 (59.7) | 130 (55.8) |
| Myocardial infarction | 15 (7.6) | 31 (9.5) | 10 (8.1) | 21 (9.0) |
| Peripheral vascular disease | 21 (10.7) | 38 (11.7) | 6 (4.8) | 19 (8.2) |
| Stroke/transient ischemic attack | 36 (18.3) | 71 (21.8) | 24 (19.4) | 40 (17.2) |
| Dialysis initiation as inpatient | 62 (31.5) | 88 (27.1) | 39 (31.4) | 64 (27.5) |
| Distance between patient postal code and nearest hemodialysis facility, kmࠠ | ||||
| < 50 | 166 (84.3) | 290 (89.2) | 102 (82.3) | 192 (82.4) |
| 50–150 | 31 (15.7) | 33 (10.2) | 17 (13.7) | 29 (12.4) |
| > 150 | 0 (0.0) | 2 (0.6) | 5 (4.0) | 12 (5.2) |
| Distance between patient postal code and nearest peritoneal dialysis training centre, kmࠠ | ** | |||
| < 50 | 134 (68.0) | 249 (76.6) | 80 (64.5) | 138 (59.2) |
| 50–150 | 45 (22.8) | 64 (19.7) | 18 (14.5) | 41 (17.6) |
| > 150 | 18 (9.1) | 12 (3.7) | 26 (21.0) | 54 (23.2) |
Note: SD = standard deviation.
↵* All covariates defined based on the date of dialysis initiation. χ2 test was used for categorical variables (Fisher exact test when ≥ 20% of cells had an expected value < 5), and 2-sided 2-sample t test for continuous variables.
↵† Except where noted otherwise.
↵‡ Significant at p < 0.05 for difference between fee-for-service and salaried groups after policy change.
↵§ Estimated with the use of the postal code.
↵¶ These patients had postal codes without neighbourhood income data available.
↵** Significant at p < 0.05 for within-group difference before and after fee change.
↵†† Significant at p < 0.05 for difference between fee-for-service and salaried groups before policy change.