BMJ 1996;313:1551 (14 December)

Letters

Influences of practice characteristics on prescribing in practices

Multiple regression models depend on explanatory variables included

EDITOR,--Although Robert P H Wilson and colleagues acknowledge that demographics and morbidity are important influences on variations in prescribing costs at the level of health authorities, they proceed to consider multiple regression models for variation in prescribing at the level of practices that do not allow for either of these as explanatory variables.1

Analysis of patient linked prescribing data has shown that, within practices, the prescribing rate for those aged 55-64 is about six times that for children and young male adults, and for those aged over 65 the factor is 10 or more.2 The authors' use of rates per prescribing unit rather than per patient as the dependent variable (1 prescribing unit for those under 65; 3 prescribing units for those >/=65) may give some preliminary adjustment for age but makes no allowance for the wide variation between the age bands . . . [Full text of this article]


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Relevant Article

Influences of practice characteristics on prescribing in fundholding and non-fundholding general practices: an observational study
Robert P H Wilson, Juanita Hatcher, Stuart Barton, and Tom Walley
BMJ 1996 313: 595-599. [Abstract] [Full Text]

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