Medical care
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Comparative Study
Do financial incentives linked to ownership of specialty hospitals affect physicians' practice patterns?
Although physician-owned specialty hospitals have become increasingly prevalent in recent years, little research has examined whether the financial incentives linked to ownership influence physicians' referral rates for services performed at the specialty hospital. ⋯ Physician ownership of specialty hospitals altered the frequency of use for an array of procedures rendered to patients treated at these hospitals. Given the growth in physician-owned specialty hospitals, these findings suggest that health care expenditures will be substantially greater for patients treated at these institutions relative to persons who obtain care from nonself-referral providers.
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Recent reports speculate that provider implicit attitudes about race may contribute to racial/ethnic health care disparities. ⋯ Pediatricians held less implicit race bias compared with other MDs and others in society. Among pediatricians we found evidence of a moderate implicit "perceived patient compliance and race" stereotype. Further research is needed to explore whether physician implicit attitudes and stereotypes about race predict quality of care.