Doctor Who? The Effect of Physician-Patient Match on The SES-Health Gradient

Ida Lykke Kristiansen, Sophie Yanying Sheng

Research output: Working paperResearch

Abstract

We investigate whether primary care physician and patient concordance in terms
of socio-economic status (SES) reduces the SES inequality in health. We measure
physicians’ SES by their childhood SES and find that SES concordance decreases
low-SES patients’ mortality, while high-SES patients’ mortality does not depend
on their physicians’ background. Together, they translate to a 24% reduction in
the SES-mortality gradient. SES concordance changes the health behavior of the
patient and increases treatment of chronic conditions: low-SES patients with low-
SES physicians receive more care at the intensive margin, have a higher detection
of chronic conditions, and have higher adherence to treatment.
Original languageEnglish
Number of pages73
Publication statusPublished - 2022

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