A SPECIAL REPORT SERIES BY THE N.C DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES, DIVISION OF
HEALTH SERVICES, STATE CENTER FOR HEALTH STATISTICS, P.O. BOX 2091, RALEIGH, N.C. 27602
No. 49 March 1989
AN ASSESSMENT OF CONTINUITY OF PATIENT CARE
BETWEEN TWO PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT SERVICES:
ONE USE OF THE NORTH CAROLINA HEALTH SERVICES
INFORMATION SYSTEM (HSIS)
by
Kenneth P. Kaufman
and
Paul A. Buescher
ABSTRACT
N.C. DOCUMENTS
CLEARINGHOUSE
MAY 22 1989
N.C. STATE LIBRARY
RALEIGH
For women with live births during 1986, Health Services Information System files of maternal
health and family planning services were linked in order to determine continuity of care between
these services. Of the women with 1986 live births reported through maternal health services, 56%
received family planning services within 90 days of giving birth. Thirty-six percent of the women
who were closed out of family planning services due to pregnancy received maternal health services
in a health department within 90 days. Most women who continued in maternal health did so within
60 days of closure of the family planning record, and the average delay was 37 days. Continuity of
care varied considerably among smaller health departments, but among the larger departments it was
positively related to the number ofpatients served. Evaluation of maternal health records ofwomen
with live births during 1987 showed that prior enrollment in family planning was significandy
associated with reduced probability of a low-weight birth, and this effect was greatest with
nonwhites. The data suggest that effectiveness of case management procedures varies considerably
among health departments, and that continuity between maternal health and family planning
programs is beneficial especially for the indigent population served by health departments.