Transportation barriers to care among frequent health care users during the COVID pandemic

Objective: To investigate transportation barriers to accessing health care services during the COVID-19 pandemic among high-frequency health care users.Data Sources: Between June 21 and July 23, 2021, primary survey data were collected for a sample of patients in North Carolina.Study Design: The study analyzed the prevalence of arriving late to, delaying, or missing medical care and examined how transportation barriers contributed to negative health care outcomes. Data Collection Methods: A web-based survey was administered to North Carolina residents aged 18 and older in the UNC Health system who were enrolled in Medicaid or Medicare and had at least six outpatient medical appointments in the past year. 323 complete responses were analyzed to investigate the prevalence of reporting transportation barriers that resulted in having arrived late to, delayed, or missed care, as well as relationships between demographic and other independent variables and transportation barriers. Qualitative analyses were performed on text response data to explain transportation barriers.Principal Findings: Approximately 1 in 3 respondents experienced transportation barriers to health care between June 2020 and June 2021. Multivariate logistic regressions indicate individuals aged 18–64 were significantly more likely to encounter transportation barriers. Costs of traveling for medical appointments and a lack of driver or car availability emerged as major transportation barriers; however, respondents explained that barriers were often complex, involving circumstantial problems related to one’s ability to access and pay for transportation as well as to personal health.Conclusions: To address transportation barriers, we recommend more coordination between transportation and health professionals and the implementation of programs that expand access to and improve patient awareness of health care mobility services. We also recommend transportation and health entities direct resources to address transportation barriers equitably, as barriers disproportionately burden younger adults under age 65 enrolled in public insurance programs.

Effect of Interventions for Non-Medical Emergency Transportation: A Systematic Review

Introduction: Transportation is an important social determinant of health. We conducted a systematic review of the associations on health and health care utilization of interventions aimed at reducing barriers to non-emergency transportation and non-medical transportation.Methods: We searched multiple databases and the gray literature through late January 2021. Included studies needed to assess an intervention targeted at non-emergency or non-medical transportation barriers, report missed (or kept) visits, health care utilization, costs, or health outcomes. Data extraction was performed in duplicate and included information about study design, results, and risk of bias. Primary outcomes were frequency of missed appointments, health care utilization, costs, and health outcomes. Synthesis was both narrative and meta-analytic using a random effects model. Results: 12 studies met inclusion criteria, 3 randomized trials, 1 controlled trial, and 8 observational studies. All included studies had some element of risk of bias. Populations studied usually had chronic or serious health conditions or were poor. Interventions included van rides, bus or taxi vouchers, ride-sharing services, and others. Meta-analysis of 7 studies (3 trials, 4 observational studies) yielded a pooled estimate of missed appointments = 0.63 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.48, 0.83) favoring interventions. Evidence on cost, utilization, and health outcomes were too sparse to support conclusions. Evidence on the effect of non-medical transportation is limited to a single study.Conclusions and Relevance: Interventions aimed at non-emergency transportation barriers to access health care are associated with fewer missed appointments; the association with costs, utilization or health outcomes is insufficiently studied to reach conclusions.This review was registered in PROSPERO as ID CRD42020201875

Transportation barriers to health care and mortality risk among the U.S. adults with history of cancer.

121 Background: Lack of transportation delayed medical care for approximately 6 million Americans in 2017. Prior studies showed cancer survivors tend to have more healthcare service use, higher medical cost, and adverse clinical outcomes. It is important to understand the prevalence of, risk factors for, and long-term health consequences of transportation barrier to health care among cancer survivors. Methods: We identified cohorts of adult with history of cancer (n = 25,317) and adults without history of cancer (n = 422,797) from the 2000-2014 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Transportation barriers were measured as medical care delay due to lack of transportation in the past 12 months using a survey question. The prevalence of transportation barriers was estimated using multivariable logistic models. Risk of mortality estimated with weighted Cox’s proportional hazards models with age as the time scale, adjusting for sex, race/ethnicity, educational attainment, marital status, region, comorbidities, and survey year. All analyses accounted for complex survey design using SAS statistical software, version 9.4 (SAS Institute Inc.), and SAS callable SUDAAN 11.0.3. Results: After adjustment for sociodemographic factors and comorbidities, the prevalence of transportation barrier were significantly higher among cancer survivors than among respondents without cancer history (2.1% vs 1.6%, p = 0.001, adjusted odd ratio [OR], 1.22; 95% confidence interval (95CI): 1.10-1.35). Cancer survivors with transportation barrier were more likely to be younger, female, Hispanic or Asian/Pacific Islander, less educated, unmarried, public insurance beneficiary or uninsured, and with more comorbidities. Among all participants, cancer survivors with transportation barrier had the highest adjusted mortality risk (hazard ratio [HR]: 2.12, 95CI: 1.81-2.49); followed by cancer survivors without transportation barrier (HR: 1.53, 95CI: 1.42-1.65); and adults without a cancer history with transportation barrier (HR: 1.50; 95CI: 1.45-1.55) compared with adults with neither a cancer history nor transportation barrier. Conclusions: Transportation barriers to health care had a disproportionate impact on cancer survivors, especially those who are underserved, and who have more medical needs. Increased risk of mortality was observed among adults with and without a cancer history who delayed care due to lack of transportation. It highlights the need for efforts to mitigate transportation barriers to medical care during a time of rapid change in transportation and telehealth technology.

Resolving transportation disparity in cancer care.

96 Background: Improving healthcare value requires new models of care including higher utilization of outpatient services. A significant social determinant of health in this mode of care is transportation, and the most vulnerable segments of society are disproportionately affected. Transportation disparity is especially troubling in radiation oncology, due to the protracted daily treatment schedule. Disruptions in treatment adversely impact clinical outcomes and survivals. This study is a pilot trial of a novel virtual logistics hub, capable of managing rideshare, taxis, wheelchair accessible vehicles, vehicles with car seats for children and stretcher vehicles in radiation oncology to measure utilization, patient satisfaction and financial impact. Methods: Over 4 months, using predictive analytics, patients with transportation barriers in a community cancer center were enrolled in a rideshare program. Those who received rides for radiation treatment were included in this study. Each patient's personal historic no-show rate in the health system was recorded. The estimated cost per no-show for a radiation treatment was set at $250. The opportunity cost was calculated as the product of the no-show rate, the no-show cost per treatment and the number of treatments. In addition, the cost of the transportation was recorded and subtracted from the opportunity cost to calculate the return on investment ROI. Qualitative data were also collected through patient surveys after each ride. Results: 29 subjects were included in this IRB-approved pilot study for a total of 419 rides. The most common diagnoses were Breast (27.6%), Lung (17.2%) and Prostate (17.2%). Most patients were racial minorities (70.0%) and had non-metastatic disease (75.9%). The median number of radiation treatments was 10 (3-40). The historic average no-show rate was 7% (0%-36%). The average expected no show cost per patient was $219.14 ($0.00-$1,837.50). The opportunity cost representing the benefit to the health system was $6,355.00. Per patient, the average transportation cost was $325.81 ($13.26-$1,034.39). The total cost of rides was $11,864.77. The ROI was -$5,509.77. When asked 'How would you rate your transportation experience today?' 82% responded Above Average. To the question 'Would you have been able to attend your appointment today if this program did not exist?' 92% answered No. Conclusions: This study shows that the cost of rideshare transportation can partially offset the cost of no-shows. This suggests that a proactive virtual transportation hub can help address transportation barriers, drive patient satisfaction and reduce the waste of no-shows. Radiation therapy represents an ambulatory medicine crucible for patients with limited transportation and social support. Scaling up rideshare innovations from radiation oncology has the potential to drive broader ambulatory strategy.

Transportation as a barrier to colorectal cancer care

Background Transportation barriers limit access to cancer care services and contribute to suboptimal clinical outcomes. Our objectives were to describe the frequency of Veterans reporting and the factors associated with transportation barriers to or from colorectal cancer (CRC) care visits. Methods Between November 2015 and September 2016, Veterans with incident stage I, II, or III CRC completed a mailed survey to assess perceived barriers to recommended care. Participants who reported difficulty with transportation to or from CRC care appointments were categorized as experiencing transportation barriers. We assessed pairwise correlations between transportation barriers, transportation-related factors (e.g., mode of travel), and chaotic lifestyle (e.g., predictability of schedules), and used logistic regression to examine the association between the reporting of transportation difficulties, distance traveled to the nearest Veterans Affairs (VA) facility, and life chaos. Results Of the 115 Veterans included in this analysis, 18% reported experiencing transportation barriers. Distance to the VA was not strongly correlated with the reporting of transportation barriers (Spearman’s ρ = 0.12, p = 0.19), but chaotic lifestyle was both positively and significantly correlated with experiencing transportation barriers (Spearman’s ρ = 0.22, p = 0.02). Results from the logistic regression model modestly supported the findings from the pairwise correlations, but were not statistically significant. Conclusions Transportation is an important barrier to or from CRC care visits, especially among Veterans who experience greater life chaos. Identifying Veterans who experience chaotic lifestyles would allow for timely engagement in behavioral interventions (e.g., organizational skills training) and with support services (e.g., patient navigation).

Cultural Beliefs on the Causes of Cleft Lip and/or Palate in Malaysia: A Multicenter Study

Objective: To identify the cultural beliefs about the causes of cleft among parents of patients with nonsyndromic cleft lip and/or palate in a multiethnic society in Malaysia and the difficulties encountered in receiving cleft treatment. Design: A descriptive cross-sectional multicenter study based on a study questionnaire was conducted of parents of patients with cleft lip and/or palate. Setting: Three centers providing cleft care from different regions in Malaysia: the national capital of Kuala Lumpur, east coast of peninsular Malaysia, and East Malaysia on the island of Borneo. Participants: Parents/primary caregivers of patients with cleft lip and/or palate. Results: There were 295 respondents from different ethnic groups: Malays (58.3%), indigenous Sabah (30.5%), Chinese (7.1%), Indian (2.4%), and indigenous Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak (1.7%). Malay participants reported that attributing causes of cleft to God’s will, superstitious beliefs that the child’s father went fishing when the mother was pregnant or inheritance. Sabahans parents reported that clefts are caused by maternal antenatal trauma, fruit picking, or carpentry. The Chinese attribute clefts to cleaning house drains, sewing, or using scissors. Cultural background was reported by 98.3% of participants to pose no barrier in cleft treatment. Those from lower socioeconomic and educational backgrounds were more likely to encounter difficulties while receiving treatment, which included financial constraints and transportation barriers. Conclusion: There is a wide range of cultural beliefs in the multiethnic society of Malaysia. These beliefs do not prevent treatment for children with cleft. However, they face challenges while receiving cleft treatment, particularly financial constraints and transportation barriers. Such barriers are more likely experienced by parents from lower income and lower education backgrounds.