Pre-post analysis of the impact of British Columbia nurse practitioner primary care clinics on patient health and care experience
- PMID: 37857545
- PMCID: PMC10603457
- DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2023-072812
Pre-post analysis of the impact of British Columbia nurse practitioner primary care clinics on patient health and care experience
Abstract
Objective: This study aims to evaluate the impact of a primary care nurse practitioner (NP)-led clinic model piloted in British Columbia (Canada) on patients' health and care experience.
Design: The study relies on a quasi-experimental longitudinal design based on a pre-and-post survey of patients receiving care in NP-led clinics. The prerostering survey (T0) was focused on patients' health status and care experiences preceding being rostered to the NP clinic. One year later, patients were asked to complete a similar survey (T1) focused on the care experiences with the NP clinic.
Setting: To solve recurring problems related to poor primary care accessibility, British Columbia opened four pilot NP-led clinics in 2020. Each clinic has the equivalent of approximately six full-time NPs, four other clinicians plus support staff. Clinics are located in four cities ranging from urban to suburban.
Participants: Recruitment was conducted by the clinic's clerical staff or by their care provider. A total of 437 usable T0 surveys and 254 matched and usable T1 surveys were collected.
Primary outcome measures: The survey instrument was focused on five core dimensions of patients' primary care experience (accessibility, continuity, comprehensiveness, responsiveness and outcomes of care) as well as on the SF-12 Short-form Health Survey.
Results: Scores for all dimensions of patients' primary care experience increased significantly: accessibility (T0=5.9, T1=7.9, p<0.001), continuity (T0=5.5, T1=8.8, p<0.001), comprehensiveness (T0=5.6, T1=8.4, p<0.001), responsiveness (T0=7.2, T1=9.5, p<0.001), outcomes of care (T0=5.0, T1=8.3, p<0.001). SF-12 Physical health T-scores also rose significantly (T0=44.8, T1=47.6, p<0.001) but no changes we found in the mental health T scores (T0=45.8, T1=46.3 p=0.709).
Conclusions: Our results suggest that the NP-led primary care model studied here likely constitutes an effective approach to improve primary care accessibility and quality.
Keywords: GENERAL MEDICINE (see Internal Medicine); Health Services Accessibility; Health policy; Primary Health Care.
© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.
Conflict of interest statement
Competing interests: The authors report no competing interests. KB is a locum NP in one of the clinics in which the study took place.
Figures





Similar articles
-
Evaluating the cost of NP-led vs. GP-led primary care in British Columbia.Healthc Manage Forum. 2024 Jul;37(4):244-250. doi: 10.1177/08404704241229075. Epub 2024 Jan 30. Healthc Manage Forum. 2024. PMID: 38291669 Free PMC article.
-
Utilization of nurse practitioners to increase patient access to primary healthcare in Canada--thinking outside the box.Nurs Leadersh (Tor Ont). 2010 Dec;23 Spec No 2010:239-59. doi: 10.12927/cjnl.2010.22281. Nurs Leadersh (Tor Ont). 2010. PMID: 21478696
-
Engagement of nurse practitioners in primary health care in northern British Columbia: a mixed-methods study.CMAJ Open. 2021 Mar 30;9(1):E288-E294. doi: 10.9778/cmajo.20200075. Print 2021 Jan-Mar. CMAJ Open. 2021. PMID: 33785476 Free PMC article.
-
Primary care outcomes in patients treated by nurse practitioners or physicians: a randomized trial.JAMA. 2000 Jan 5;283(1):59-68. doi: 10.1001/jama.283.1.59. JAMA. 2000. PMID: 10632281 Clinical Trial.
-
The effectiveness of nurse practitioner care for patients with mental health conditions in primary care settings: A systematic review.Nurs Outlook. 2023 Jul-Aug;71(4):101995. doi: 10.1016/j.outlook.2023.101995. Epub 2023 Jun 19. Nurs Outlook. 2023. PMID: 37343483 Free PMC article.
Cited by
-
Evaluating the cost of NP-led vs. GP-led primary care in British Columbia.Healthc Manage Forum. 2024 Jul;37(4):244-250. doi: 10.1177/08404704241229075. Epub 2024 Jan 30. Healthc Manage Forum. 2024. PMID: 38291669 Free PMC article.
References
-
- Statistics Canada . Primary health care providers, 2019. Ottawa: Minister of Industry, 2020.
-
- CIHI . Commonwealth fund survey, 2020 [Internet]. 2020. Available: https://www.cihi.ca/en/commonwealth-fund-survey-2020
-
- Azpiri J. Nearly 60% of British Columbians find it difficult to access a doctor or have no access at all: poll. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, 2022.
Publication types
MeSH terms
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Miscellaneous