eCite Digital Repository
Rural patients’ perceptions of their potentially preventable hospitalisation: a qualitative study
Citation
Ridge, A and Peterson, GM and Seidel, BM and Anderson, V and Nash, R, Rural patients' perceptions of their potentially preventable hospitalisation: a qualitative study, Journal of Patient Experience, 9 pp. 1-11. ISSN 2374-3735 (2022) [Refereed Article]
 | PDF 583Kb |
Copyright Statement
Copyright 2021 The Authors. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0
DOI: doi:10.1177/23743735211069825
Abstract
Potentially preventable hospitalisations (PPHs) occur when patients receive hospital care for a condition that could have been more appropriately managed in the primary healthcare setting. It is anticipated that the causes of PPHs in rural populations may differ from those in urban populations; however, this is understudied. Semi-structured interviews with 10 rural Australian patients enabled them to describe their recent PPH experience. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to identify the common factors that may have led to their PPH. The analysis revealed that most participants had challenges associated with their health and its optimal self-management. Self-referral to hospital with the belief that this was the only treatment option available was also common. Most participants had limited social networks to call on in times of need or ill health. Finally, difficulty in accessing primary healthcare, especially urgently or after-hours, was described as a frequent cause of PPH. These qualitative accounts revealed that patients describe nonclinical risk factors as contributing to their recent PPH and reinforces that the views of patients should be included when designing interventions to reduce PPHs.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | access to care, health literacy, healthcare planning or policy, patient expectations, patient perspectives/narratives, preventable hospitalization, qualitative methods, rural |
| Research Division: | Health Sciences |
| Research Group: | Health services and systems |
| Research Field: | Primary health care |
| Objective Division: | Health |
| Objective Group: | Provision of health and support services |
| Objective Field: | Community health care |
| UTAS Author: | Ridge, A (Mr Andrew Ridge) |
| UTAS Author: | Peterson, GM (Professor Gregory Peterson) |
| UTAS Author: | Seidel, BM (Professor Bastian Seidel) |
| UTAS Author: | Anderson, V (Ms Vinah Anderson) |
| UTAS Author: | Nash, R (Dr Rosie Nash) |
| ID Code: | 148662 |
| Year Published: | 2022 |
| Web of Science® Times Cited: | 1 |
| Deposited By: | Pharmacy |
| Deposited On: | 2022-02-01 |
| Last Modified: | 2022-03-30 |
| Downloads: | 7 View Download Statistics |
Repository Staff Only: item control page