Serious Psychological Distress and Emergency Room Use among Adults with Multimorbidity in the United States
Table 1
Characteristics of adults with multimorbidity by serious psychological distress status. National Health Interview Survey, 2015.
All
Total sample
SPD
No SPD
value
Wt.%
Wt.% (Col%)
Wt.% (Col%)
12,869
100.0
772
5.8
12,097
94.2
ER use
<0.001
Yes
3,663
26.8
412
54.1
3,251
25.2
No
9,206
73.2
360
45.9
8,846
74.8
Predisposing factors
Sex
<0.001
Women
7,350
53.0
509
62.8
6,841
52.4
Men
5,519
47.0
263
37.2
5,256
47.6
Age in years
<0.001
22–39 years
1,131
10.2
108
19.0
1,023
9.7
40–49 years
1,394
12.4
144
16.8
1,250
12.1
50–64 years
4,241
36.3
333
44.0
3,908
35.8
65 and older
6,103
41.1
187
20.2
5,916
42.3
Race/ethnicity
0.012
Hispanic
1,480
10.4
139
15.3
1,341
10.1
Non-Hispanic white
8,859
72.8
500
69.1
8,359
73.1
Non-Hispanic black
1,889
11.9
95
10.5
1,794
12.0
Other non-Hispanic races
641
4.9
38
5.1
603
4.9
Enabling factors
Marital status
<0.001
Married
6,165
63.0
279
47.5
5,886
64.0
Widowed, separated, divorced
5,135
27.5
356
35.7
4,779
27.1
Never
1,549
9.4
134
16.9
1,415
8.9
Education level
<0.001
Less than high school
2,104
14.5
223
29.8
1,881
13.6
High school
3,559
27.3
210
26.9
3,349
27.5
Greater than high school
7,149
57.7
337
43.2
6,812
58.9
Poverty status
<0.001
<100% FPL
1,945
11.1
295
31.5
1,650
9.9
100–<200%
2,748
18.5
218
27.2
2,530
17.9
200–<400%
3,474
26.5
153
24.4
3,321
26.6
≥400%
3,848
37.0
74
12.1
3,774
38.6
Missing
854
6.9
32
4.8
822
7.0
Health insurance
<0.001
Insured
12,228
95.0
691
86.6
11,537
95.5
Uninsured
641
5.0
81
13.4
560
4.5
Need factors
Perceived general health
<0.001
Excellent/very good
4,737
39.0
76
11.9
4,661
40.6
Good
4,486
34.7
158
19.2
4,328
35.7
Fair/Poor
3,642
26.3
538
68.9
3,104
23.7
Functional limitations
<0.001
Yes
8,547
63.0
715
92.0
7,832
61.3
No
4,312
36.9
57
8.0
4,255
38.7
Personal health practices
Body mass index
0.008
Underweight /normal
3,223
24.0
197
26.1
3,026
23.9
Overweight
4,246
33.3
193
26.3
4,053
33.8
Obese
5,076
39.8
354
42.9
4,722
39.6
Missing
324
2.8
28
4.7
296
2.7
Smoking status
<0.001
Nonsmoker
6,521
51.7
285
37.4
6,236
52.6
Former smoker
4,210
32.8
166
20.5
4,044
33.6
Current Smoker
2,126
15.4
321
42.1
1,805
13.8
Alcohol use
<0.001
Lifetime abstainer
2,581
17.9
143
18.2
2,438
18.0
Former drinker
3,088
22.9
249
32.1
2,839
22.4
Current drinker
7,125
58.7
376
49.7
6,749
59.6
Physical activity
<0.001
Daily
623
4.9
25
2.7
598
5.1
Weekly
2,825
24.8
75
11.2
2,750
25.8
No exercise
8,811
66.2
586
75.3
8,225
65.9
Unable
565
3.7
82
10.7
483
3.3
External environmental factors
Region of residence
0.615
Northeast
2,197
17.6
132
15.1
2,065
17.8
Midwest
2,768
23.2
155
23.9
2,613
23.2
South
4,603
38.6
287
40.6
4,316
38.5
West
3,301
20.6
198
20.4
3,103
20.6
Note. Based on 12,869 adults aged over 21 years having two or more physical diseases with and without serious psychological distress (SPD). SPD was defined as a score of 13 or greater on the K6. SPD: serious psychological distress; ER: emergency room; Wt.: weighted; FPL: federal poverty line.
