The relationship between the race/ethnicity of generalist physicians and their care for underserved populations.

TLDR

The study examined whether physicians’ race or ethnicity predicts their likelihood of caring for medically underserved populations. Surveyed 1,581 generalist physicians who earned MDs in 1983–84 and compared their personal and background characteristics across four racial/ethnic groups with those of their patients. After adjusting for gender, childhood income, residence, and National Health Services Corps aid, physicians from underrepresented minorities were significantly more likely to care for medically underserved populations than nonminority physicians.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to examine empirically the relationship between physicians' race or ethnicity and their care for medically underserved populations. METHODS: Generalist physicians who received the MD degree in 1983 or 1984 (n = 1581) were surveyed. The personal and background characteristics of four racial/ethnic groups of physicians were compared with the characteristics of their patients. RESULTS: When the potentially confounding variables of gender, childhood family income, childhood residence, and National Health Services Corps financial aid obligations were controlled, generalist physicians from underrepresented minorities were more likely than their nonminority counterparts to care for medically underserved populations. CONCLUSIONS: Physicians from underrepresented minorities are more likely than others to care for medically underserved populations.