Factors Associated With First-Time Use of Preventive Services in the United States.

Gai, Yunwei; Feng, Li

Objective: To examine factors associ­ated with first-time use of preventive services based on the Behavioral Model of Health Services Use. Methods: Nine panels of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey were merged to identify first-time users of 8 preventive services: blood pres­sure check, cholesterol screening, colo­noscopy, flu vaccination, routine physi­cal, Pap smear, mammogram, and clinical breast examination. Multivariate logis­tic regressions and sample weights were used. Results: Insurance coverage, access to care, and racial/ethnic minorities are associated with higher odds of first-time use. Findings based on cross-sectional data may not be valid for first-time use. Conclusions: Increased insurance cover­age, better access to care, and a focus on minority population can help nonusers of preventive care to make the transition.

UNITED States; PREVENTIVE medicine; MEDICAL screening; BLOOD pressure; BREAST exams; MAMMOGRAMS; CHOLESTEROL; COLONOSCOPY; CONFIDENCE intervals; EPIDEMIOLOGY; HELP-seeking behavior; MATHEMATICAL models; MEDICAL care use; MULTIVARIATE analysis; PAP test; QUESTIONNAIRES; LOGISTIC regression analysis; THEORY; DATA analysis; DATA analysis software

American Journal of Health Behavior, 2013, Vol 37, Issue 2, p257

1087-3244

Academic Journal

10.5993/AJHB.37.2.13