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The role country of birth plays in receiving disability pensions in relation to patterns of health care utilisation and socioeconomic differences: a multilevel analysis of Malmo, Sweden

Beckman, Anders LU orcid ; Håkansson, Anders LU ; Råstam, Lennart LU ; Lithman, T and Merlo, Juan LU orcid (2006) In BMC Public Health 6.
Abstract
Background: People of low socioeconomic status have worse health and a higher probability of being granted a disability pension than people of high socioeconomic status. It is also known that public and private general physicians and public and private specialists have varying practices for issuing sick leave certificates ( which, if longstanding, may become the basis of disability pensions). However, few studies have investigated the influence of a patient's country of birth in this context. Methods: We used multilevel logistic regression analysis with individuals ( first level) nested within countries of birth ( second level). We analysed the entire population between the ages of 40 and 64 years ( n = 80 212) in the city of Malmo,... (More)
Background: People of low socioeconomic status have worse health and a higher probability of being granted a disability pension than people of high socioeconomic status. It is also known that public and private general physicians and public and private specialists have varying practices for issuing sick leave certificates ( which, if longstanding, may become the basis of disability pensions). However, few studies have investigated the influence of a patient's country of birth in this context. Methods: We used multilevel logistic regression analysis with individuals ( first level) nested within countries of birth ( second level). We analysed the entire population between the ages of 40 and 64 years ( n = 80 212) in the city of Malmo, Sweden, in 2003, and identified 73% of that population who had visited a physician at least once during that year. We studied the associations between individuals and country of birth socioeconomic characteristics, as well as individual utilisation of different kinds of physicians in relation to having been granted a disability pension. Results: Living alone ( ORwomen = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.62 - 1.82; ORmen = 2.64, 95% CI: 2.46 - 2.83) and having limited educational achievement (ORwomen = 2.14, 95% CI: 2.00 - 2.29; ORmen = 2.12, 95% CI: 1.98 - 2.28) were positively associated with having a disability pension. Utilisation of public specialists was associated with a higher probability (ORwomen = 2.11, 95% CI: 1.98 - 2.25; ORmen = 2.16, 95% CI: 2.01 - 2.32) and utilisation of private GPs with a lower probability (ORmen = 0.76, 95% CI: 0.69 - 0.83) of having a disability pension. However, these associations differed by countries of birth. Over and above individual socioeconomic status, men from middle income countries had a higher probability of having a disability pension (ORmen = 1.61, 95% CI: 1.06 - 2.44). Conclusion: The country of one's birth appears to play a significant role in understanding how individual socioeconomic differences bear on the likelihood of receiving a disability pension and on associated patterns of health care utilisation. (Less)
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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
BMC Public Health
volume
6
publisher
BioMed Central (BMC)
external identifiers
  • pmid:16542459
  • wos:000236784100001
  • scopus:33645568327
  • pmid:16542459
ISSN
1471-2458
DOI
10.1186/1471-2458-6-71
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
552ed8b9-42e2-4d58-b9b4-cf1722e295f2 (old id 908725)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 16:38:47
date last changed
2022-01-28 21:06:50
@article{552ed8b9-42e2-4d58-b9b4-cf1722e295f2,
  abstract     = {{Background: People of low socioeconomic status have worse health and a higher probability of being granted a disability pension than people of high socioeconomic status. It is also known that public and private general physicians and public and private specialists have varying practices for issuing sick leave certificates ( which, if longstanding, may become the basis of disability pensions). However, few studies have investigated the influence of a patient's country of birth in this context. Methods: We used multilevel logistic regression analysis with individuals ( first level) nested within countries of birth ( second level). We analysed the entire population between the ages of 40 and 64 years ( n = 80 212) in the city of Malmo, Sweden, in 2003, and identified 73% of that population who had visited a physician at least once during that year. We studied the associations between individuals and country of birth socioeconomic characteristics, as well as individual utilisation of different kinds of physicians in relation to having been granted a disability pension. Results: Living alone ( ORwomen = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.62 - 1.82; ORmen = 2.64, 95% CI: 2.46 - 2.83) and having limited educational achievement (ORwomen = 2.14, 95% CI: 2.00 - 2.29; ORmen = 2.12, 95% CI: 1.98 - 2.28) were positively associated with having a disability pension. Utilisation of public specialists was associated with a higher probability (ORwomen = 2.11, 95% CI: 1.98 - 2.25; ORmen = 2.16, 95% CI: 2.01 - 2.32) and utilisation of private GPs with a lower probability (ORmen = 0.76, 95% CI: 0.69 - 0.83) of having a disability pension. However, these associations differed by countries of birth. Over and above individual socioeconomic status, men from middle income countries had a higher probability of having a disability pension (ORmen = 1.61, 95% CI: 1.06 - 2.44). Conclusion: The country of one's birth appears to play a significant role in understanding how individual socioeconomic differences bear on the likelihood of receiving a disability pension and on associated patterns of health care utilisation.}},
  author       = {{Beckman, Anders and Håkansson, Anders and Råstam, Lennart and Lithman, T and Merlo, Juan}},
  issn         = {{1471-2458}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{BioMed Central (BMC)}},
  series       = {{BMC Public Health}},
  title        = {{The role country of birth plays in receiving disability pensions in relation to patterns of health care utilisation and socioeconomic differences: a multilevel analysis of Malmo, Sweden}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-6-71}},
  doi          = {{10.1186/1471-2458-6-71}},
  volume       = {{6}},
  year         = {{2006}},
}