General and specific factors in the explanation of regional variation of hospital admission rates: policy consequences for Belgium and the Netherlands

The analysis of regional variations in hospital admission rates for Belgium and the Netherlands shows that the available number of hospital beds together with the health status of the population (roughly indicated by age-adjusted mortality rates) are common factors to influence these admissions in spite of the fundamental differences between the health care systems of both countries. Further analysis shows that in Belgium the relative number of providers of ambulatory care (general practitioners, internists, paediatricians and gynaecologists) influences the residual admission coefficients nega... Mehr ...