Open AccessPosttraumatic Stress Disorder Screening Status is Associated with Increased VA Medical and Surgical Utilization in Women
Author(s) -
Dobie Dorcas J.,
Maynard Charles,
Kivlahan Daniel R.,
Johnson Kay M.,
Simpson Tracy,
David Andrew C.,
Bradley Katharine
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
journal of general internal medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.746
H-Index - 180
eISSN - 1525-1497
pISSN - 0884-8734
DOI - 10.1111/j.1525-1497.2006.00376.x
Subject(s) - medicine , veterans affairs , prospective cohort study , emergency department , posttraumatic stress , emergency medicine , psychiatry
BACKGROUND: Women with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) report poor health, but associations with health care utilization are understudied. OBJECTIVE: To determine associations between medical/surgical utilization and PTSD in female Veterans Affairs (VA) patients. DESIGN: Prospective comparison of utilization rates between women screening positive or negative for PTSD on a mailed survey. SUBJECTS: Women receiving care at an urban VA medical center between October 1996 and January 2000. MEASUREMENTS: Survey responses, including a validated screen for PTSD (PCL‐C), and VA utilization data through September 2002. RESULTS: Two thousand five hundred and seventy‐eight (2,578) women (78% of those eligible) completed the PCL‐C; 858 (33%) of them screened positive for PTSD (PTSD+). In unadjusted models, PTSD+ women had higher rates of medical/surgical hospitalizations and surgical inpatient procedures. Among women ages 35 to 49, mean days hospitalized/100 patients/year was 43.4 (95% CI 26 to 61) for PTSD+ women versus 17.0 (16 to 18) for PTSD negative (PTSD–) women. More PTSD+ women underwent surgical procedures ( P <.001). Mean annual outpatient visits were significantly higher among PTSD+ women, including: emergency department (ED) (1.1 [1.0 to 1.2] vs 0.6 [0.5 to 0.6]), primary care (3.2 [3.0 to 3.4] vs 2.2 [2.1 to 2.3]), medical/surgical subspecialists (2.1 [1.9 to 2.3] vs 1.5 [1.4 to 1.6]), ancillary services (4.1 [3.7 to 4.5] vs 2.4 [2.2 to 2.6]), and diagnostic tests (5.6 [5.1 to 6.1] vs 3.7 [3.4 to 4.0]). In multivariate models adjusted for demographics, smoking, service access, and medical comorbidities, PTSD+ women had greater likelihood of medical/surgical hospitalization (OR=1.37 [1.04 to 1.79]) and of being among the top quartile of patients for visits to the ED, primary care, ancillary services, and diagnostic testing. CONCLUSIONS: Female veterans who screen PTSD+ receive more VA medical/surgical services. Appropriateness of that care deserves further study.