News Release

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April 5, 2006

Editors’ note: May 1-7 is national Cover the Uninsured Week

Survey Assesses Role of Clinics in Health Care Safety Net

A recent survey conducted by Boise State University’s College of Health Sciences shows that community medical clinics are providing a reliable safety net to Ada County’s uninsured and underinsured populations. The survey compared the views, attitudes and challenges of clinic patients with those of the general population that were collected during an earlier countywide survey.

Both surveys are part of the ADA County Healthy Community Access Program (HCAP). HCAP is a $2.02 million federal grant that has provided funds to study and improve health care in Ada County, especially for the under- and uninsured. The latest survey questioned 618 patients at three HCAP participating clinics about their access to medical, dental and mental health providers, ability to purchase prescription medications and their general attitudes and perceptions.

When compared to the general population, clinic respondents were more likely to be low-income, female, ethnically diverse and unemployed. Despite these differences, clinic patients were just as likely as the general population to be satisfied with their care and to feel that they have a “medical home” where they can access services when needed. When asked if they had established a relationship with their doctor or clinic, clinic patients were more likely than the general public to say yes.

Responses were less positive in the areas of dental and mental health care. Clinic patients were less likely to have access to either service due to high costs and lack of insurance. In addition, these respondents were more likely than the general public to have had mental health and substance abuse problems in the past five years, and were more likely to be unemployed — and therefore uninsured — due to those problems.

Finally, when compared to the general public, more clinic patients were likely to have taken a prescribed medication in the past year. Because most had no prescription insurance, they were also more likely to pay for those prescriptions out of pocket.

“These results show that patients at the three HCAP clinics are very satisfied with the care they receive,” said Ed Baker, lead evaluator for the HCAP grant and assistant professor in Boise State’s Department of Community and Environmental Health. “However, these clinics cannot currently care for all the uninsured and underinsured in Ada County.”

Survey respondents were patients at the Family Medicine Residency of Idaho, Terry Reilly Health Services (Boise) and the Garden City Community Clinic. To access the full clinic data report, go to http://hs.boisestate.edu//ResearchProjects.htm.

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Contacts: Ed Baker, College of Health Sciences, (208) 426-3118, ebaker@boisesetate.edu; Julia Robinson, HCAP project director, (208) 850-5933, julierobins@msn.com 
Media Contact: Kathleen Craven, University Communications, (208) 426-3275, kcraven@boisestate.edu

Boise State University is the largest institution of higher education in Idaho with about 18,600 students and 2,200 faculty and staff. More than 190 undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and technical degrees are offered within eight colleges. A metropolitan university located in the capital city, Boise State is committed to life-enhancing research, teaching excellence and public service.

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Last reviewed on Wednesday, January 03, 2007