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44/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 44 out of 100. Risk factors

Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies

Plain-language summary

A total of 422 eligible PCPs responded. Nearly 90% of PCPs prescribed donepezil in the previous year for their dementia patients. Connecticut PCPs were more likely to prescribe several other therapeutics than their Maine counterparts. Connecticut PCPs were more likely to refer dementia patients to adult day care (85% vs. 59%) but less likely to refer to Area Agencies on Aging (21% vs. 44%; both ps < .05); referral rates to Alzheimer’s Association chapters were low in both states (30%). A greater proportion of Connecticut PCPs reported barriers to optimal dementia care, including time constraints (54% vs. 31% of Maine PCPs), unfamiliarity with community resources (46% vs. 30%), and reimbursement constraints (45% vs. 23%; all ps ≤ .05). Two thirds of PCPs were “very” or “somewhat” interested in using information technology to assist with dementia diagnosis and management; controlling for other variables, youngest PCPs were more than twice as likely as oldest to profess such interest (adjusted odds ratio = 2.04; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.02–4.08). Geographic variations are evident in PCP medication prescription patterns, community resource referral patterns, and reported barriers to optimal dementia care. Younger PCPs are more likely to adopt information technology to assist in dementia diagnosis and management.

Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris

APA 7th

Fortinsky, R. H., Zlateva, I., Delaney, C., & Kleppinger, A. (2009). Primary Care Physicians' Dementia Care Practices: Evidence of Geographic Variation. The Gerontologist. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnp106

Vancouver

Fortinsky RH, Zlateva I, Delaney C, Kleppinger A. Primary Care Physicians' Dementia Care Practices: Evidence of Geographic Variation. The Gerontologist. 2009. doi:10.1093/geront/gnp106. PMID: 19597058.

BibTeX

@article{fortinsky2009-19597058,
  author  = {Fortinsky, Richard H. and Zlateva, Ianita and Delaney, Colleen and Kleppinger, Alison},
  title   = {{Primary Care Physicians' Dementia Care Practices: Evidence of Geographic Variation}},
  journal = {The Gerontologist},
  year    = {2009},
  doi     = {10.1093/geront/gnp106},
  pmid    = {19597058},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/gnp106}
}

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How to read this study

Design: this is a cross-sectional study. Everyone is measured once, so it cannot show which came first. Read it as a snapshot of how two things go together at one moment.
Size: the record lists 422 participants. Ask whether that is enough for the question, and who they were.
Effect: the record gives no effect size, so the summary above cannot say how large any difference was.

What the evidence grade means here

This page is graded low. alzhub.org assigns the grade automatically from keywords in the abstract, not from reading the paper. Low means the abstract matched neither pattern. It is the default label, and it does not mean the work is poor; many sound lab and imaging papers land here. It can add at most 5 of the 100 points in the study score, and it is a label about design, not a verdict on whether the findings are true.

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Key findings

Nearly 90% of PCPs prescribed donepezil in the previous year for their dementia patients.
Connecticut PCPs were more likely to prescribe several other therapeutics than their Maine counterparts.
Connecticut PCPs were more likely to refer dementia patients to adult day care (85% vs. 59%) but less likely to refer to Area Agencies on Aging (21% vs. 44%; both ps < .05); referral rates to Alzheimer’s Association chapters were low in both states (30%).
A greater proportion of Connecticut PCPs reported barriers to optimal dementia care, including time constraints (54% vs. 31% of Maine PCPs), unfamiliarity with community resources (46% vs. 30%), and reimbursement constraints (45% vs. 23%; all ps ≤ .05).
Two thirds of PCPs were “very” or “somewhat” interested in using information technology to assist with dementia diagnosis and management; controlling for other variables, youngest PCPs were more than twice as likely as oldest to profess such interest (adjusted odds ratio = 2.04; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.02–4.08).

Why it matters

This survey found geographic variation in primary care physicians' dementia care practices, including medication prescription patterns, community resource referral patterns, and reported barriers to optimal care. It also found that younger physicians were more likely to be interested in using information technology to assist with dementia diagnosis and management.

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Study details

Study designcross-sectional
Participants422
Evidence strengthLow

How this study scored 44/100

Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	7 / 10	Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (The Gerontologist)
Journal's citation record	2 / 4	The Gerontologist: journal h-index 238 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	4 / 12	A snapshot of people at one point in time
Strength of evidence	1 / 5	Rated “low” in our summary
Peer-review validation	10 / 10	Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal.
How recent	1 / 5	2009 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	2 / 4	422 participants
Effect reported	0 / 3	No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Studied in people	3 / 3	Studied in people (participant count stated)
Randomized / blinded	0 / 2	No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Times cited	4 / 7	Cited 50 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	1 / 5	2.6 citations a year over 19 year(s) since 2009
Impact for its field and year	1 / 6	Cited 0.7× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	1 / 6	Cited by 1 other studies in this library
Still being cited	1 / 4	Cited 14 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	2 / 4	Last-listed author Alison Kleppinger: h-index 35 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	1 / 3	University of Connecticut: institution h-index 736 (OpenAlex)
Multicenter collaboration	1 / 3	OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 19597058)
Free to read	0 / 2	Behind a paywall — scores zero
Total	44 / 100	—

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