Physician Characteristics As Predictors of Blood Pressure Control in Patients Enrolled in the Hypertension Improvement Project (HIP)

The authors sought to examine the relationship between physician characteristics and patient blood pressure (BP) in participants enrolled in the Hypertension Improvement Project (HIP). In this cross-sectional study using baseline data of HIP participants, the authors used multiple linear regression to examine how patient BP was related to physician characteristics, including experience, practice patterns, and clinic load. Patients had significantly lower systolic BP (SBP) (-0.2 mm Hg for every 1% increase, P=.008) and diastolic BP (DBP) (-0.1 mm Hg for every 1% increase, P=.0007) when seen by physicians with a higher percentage of patients with hypertension. Patients had significantly higher SBP (0.8 mm Hg for every 1% increase, P=.002) when seen by physicians with a higher number of total clinic visits per day. Patients had significantly lower DBP (-4.4 mm Hg decrease, P=.0002) when seen by physicians with inpatient duties. Physician's volume of patients with hypertension was related to better BP control. However, two indicators of a busy practice had conflicting relationships with BP control. Given the increasing time demands on physicians, future research should examine how physicians with a busy practice are able to successfully address BP in their patients.