Characteristic | Antibiotic initiators; no. (%) of physicians* | Opioid initiators; no. (%) of physicians* | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Lowest 75% n = 7496 | Highest 25% n = 2498 | Lowest 75% n = 7496 | Highest 25% n = 2498 | |
Physicians | ||||
Median no. of daily patient visits | ||||
< 10 | 528 (7.0) | 194 (7.8) | 494 (6.6) | 228 (9.1) |
10–20 | 3746 (50.0) | 1068 (42.8) | 3814 (50.9) | 1000 (40.0) |
> 20 | 3222 (43.0) | 1236 (49.5) | 3188 (42.5) | 1270 (50.8) |
Age, median (IQR), yr | 53 (44–61) | 53 (44–61) | 51 (42–59) | 58 (49–66) |
Sex | ||||
Female | 3533 (47.1) | 933 (37.3) | 3784 (50.5) | 682 (27.3) |
Male | 3963 (52.9) | 1565 (62.7) | 3712 (49.5) | 1816 (72.7) |
Years since medical graduation | ||||
< 11 | 1644 (21.9) | 482 (19.3) | 1830 (24.4) | 296 (11.8) |
11–24 | 2173 (29.0) | 767 (30.7) | 2410 (32.2) | 530 (21.2) |
> 24 | 3679 (49.1) | 1249 (50.0) | 3256 (43.4) | 1672 (66.9) |
Country of medical school | ||||
Canada/United States | 4661 (62.2) | 1527 (61.1) | 4525 (60.4) | 1663 (66.6) |
Other | 1703 (22.7) | 620 (24.8) | 1657 (22.1) | 666 (26.7) |
Unknown | 1132 (15.1) | 351 (14.0) | 1314 (17.5) | 169 (6.8) |
Rurality | ||||
Urban | 6791 (90.6) | 2296 (91.9) | 6891 (91.9) | 2196 (87.9) |
Rural | 705 (9.4) | 202 (8.1) | 605 (8.1) | 302 (12.1) |
Emergency department visits, mean ± SD, % | 8.35 ± 22.6 | 20.9 ± 35.1 | 14.03 ± 29.3 | 3.85 ± 14.8 |
Long-term care visits, mean ± SD, % | 2.44 ± 9.9 | 1.59 ± 8.7 | 1.03 ± 4.8 | 5.81 ± 15.2 |
Roster size, median (IQR) | 1101 (752–1540) | 1080 (616–1561) | 1026 (683–1448) | 1303 (893–1729) |
Practices | ||||
Age group, mean ± SD, yr | ||||
< 18 | 15.6 ± 7.1 | 17.7 ± 7.0 | 17.1 ± 7.1 | 131 ± 6.4 |
18–64 | 60.5 ± 10.0 | 61.3 ± 9.6 | 62.0 ± 9.0 | 56.7 ± 11.3 |
≥ 65 | 24.0 ± 12.4 | 21.0 ± 11.4 | 20.9 ± 10.2 | 30.2 ± 14.7 |
Female sex, mean ± SD, % | 57.1 ± 9.1 | 56.1 ± 6.9 | 57.7 ± 8.5 | 54.1 ± 8.2 |
Neighbourhood income quintile of patient population | ||||
Low (1–3) | 6141 (81.9) | 2050 (82.1) | 5942 (79.3) | 2249 (90.0) |
High (4–5) | 1355 (18.1) | 448 (17.9) | 1554 (20.7) | 249 (10.0) |
Comorbidities in previous 2 yr, mean ± SD, % | ||||
Acute myocardial infarction | 0.5 ± 0.5 | 0.5 ± 0.4 | 0.5 ± 0.4 | 0.7 ± 0.6 |
Congestive heart failure | 0.9 ± 0.9 | 0.8 ± 0.7 | 0.8 ± 0.8 | 1.1 ± 1.1 |
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | 1.2 ± 0.8 | 1.1 ± 0.7 | 1.1 ± 0.7 | 1.4 ± 0.9 |
Diabetes | 1.6 ± 0.8 | 1.4 ± 0.6 | 1.4 ± 0.7 | 1.7 ± 0.8 |
Hypertension | 2.3 ± 0.9 | 2.1 ± 0.8 | 2.2 ± 0.8 | 2.4 ± 1.0 |
Asthma | 0.9 ± 0.5 | 1.1 ± 0.5 | 1.0 ± 0.5 | 0.8 ± 0.5 |
Mental health condition | 20.6 ± 7.8 | 20.8 ± 6.2 | 20.6 ± 6.9 | 20.8 ± 8.9 |
Health care use in previous 2 yr, mean ± SD, % | ||||
Hospital admission | 14.6 ± 6.3 | 15.0 ± 6.0 | 14.4 ± 5.8 | 15.6 ± 7.3 |
Emergency department visit | 41.9 ± 12.2 | 46.1 ± 13.7 | 42.7 ± 12.8 | 43.8 ± 12.5 |
Note: IQR = interquartile range, SD = standard deviation.
↵* Except where noted otherwise.