Clinical similarities and demographic differences between residency and private practice patients.

BACKGROUND: This study compared the clinical and demographic mix of patients at a family practice residency site in South Carolina to those from other regions and demonstrated the effectiveness of a computerized medical record in facilitating such analysis.
METHODS: Patient visits to Richland Family Practice Center (RFP), the outpatient care site for the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, were retrospectively sampled for the period July 1992-June 1993. Data analysis used descriptive statistics and contingency tables. A time test comparing manual and computerized data retrieval was also performed.
RESULTS: The patients seen were predominantly female (75.2%) and African-American (68%). RFP treated proportionately more federally funded and minority patients than did community-based physicians. The top five principal diagnoses at RFP were hypertension, diabetes mellitus, general medical examination, normal pregnancy, and acute upper respiratory infection; the top 20 principal diagnoses accounted for 51.3% of all visits. When compared to the top 20 diagnoses for all family and general practice physicians in the southern United States, considerable overlap was present, confirming clinical similarity between patient populations at residency and private practice sites. Computerized data retrieval was faster and more complete than manual data retrieval.
CONCLUSIONS: Diagnoses encountered at RFP and reported by other family practice residencies generally parallel those documented in family practice in various geographic regions. However, residencies differ from private practices in that they care for more economically disadvantaged patients. Computerized medical records systems facilitate research within a residency program.