Why do patients receive care from a short-term medical mission? Survey study from rural Guatemala

Esquivel, Micaela; Chen, Joy C.; Woo, Russell; Siegler, Nora; Maldonado-Sifuentes, Francisco A.; Carlos-Ochoa, Jehidy S.; Cardona-Diaz, Andy R.; Uribe-Leitz, Tarsicio; D, Siegler; Weiser, Thomas; Yang, George P.

doi:10.1016/j.jss.2017.03.056

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…This raises a concern that patients may not utilize their local healthcare resources, and may have needs which go undetected or inadequately treated. Esquivel et al [7] lends support to this point as it was suggested that patients were delaying surgery at local hospitals in order to receive care from an STMM. This study of the surgical STMM in collaboration with Hospital de la Familia in Guatemala suggested skewed patient perception that STMMs provide superior quality of care compared to the local health system.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The qualitative question “what suggestions or recommendations do you have for us?” was used as personal feedback for the clinic and was not analyzed for research purposes. Questions were based on items used in prior surveys, as well as the participant responses to these surveys [479]. Measures included age, gender, level of education, and questions asking patients to rate various aspects of clinic care and logistics (Figure 1).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There were some limitations to the survey, however: the authors noted that the answer choices—sometimes limited to “yes or no”—may not provide sufficient detail regarding patient perception. Finally, a study that found patients primarily chose to seek care at a surgical STMM site in Guatemala because of its reputation for high quality of care; affordability was the second most common reason [7]. Although the study did not address which elements patients deemed to be “high quality,” there was some concern that this perception may have led some patients to delay surgical treatment, believing that they would receive better care from the STMM providers than from local providers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Bridging the Gap: Including Patient Voices in Short-Term Medical Mission Evaluations

Morales¹,

Clay²,

Khamishon³

et al. 2019

Annals of Global Health

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Background: Several studies have evaluated short term medical missions (STMM), but most have been from the perspective of the STMM teams providing their own suggestions [ 1 ]; few surveys have assessed the perceptions of patients who seek medical care at these STMM clinics [ 2 ]. Objectives: This project evaluates the efficiency, quality, and value of the services provided by a STMM clinic established in the community of Paraíso in Santo Domingo Norte, Dominican Republic, as perceived by the patients. Study results will allow organizers to make improvements to these clinics and will contribute to a broader understanding of the benefit and value of medical services provided by STMMs. Methods: A mixed method, cross-sectional survey was created which consisted of 11 questions and a medication quiz. The survey questions were based on items used in prior surveys, as well as the participant responses to those surveys, and attempted to address perceived efficiency, quality, value, and effectiveness of services provided, as well as the impact on the community. Findings: Two-hundred sixty-six patients were invited to complete the survey, and 117 (44%) were enrolled in the study. The majority of survey responses were positive and highlighted patients’ satisfaction with provider skills and communication. Of note, many responses identified longer than anticipated wait times during two portions of the patient encounter and self-reported deferral of local care to receive care with the STMM. Additionally, although average medication quiz scores were high, average scores decreased with age. Conclusions: This study brings to light patient perceptions of services at a STMM in the community of Paraíso in Santo Domingo Norte, Dominican Republic. Survey responses highlight the importance of efforts to: minimize clinic wait time; enhance collaboration between local providers and STMMs to reduce deferral of care; and improve medication knowledge among the geriatric population.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Bridging the Gap: Including Patient Voices in Short-Term Medical Mission Evaluations

Morales¹,

Clay²,

Khamishon³

et al. 2019

Annals of Global Health

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“…Social media presents opportunities for the dissemination of misleading medical information; this runs further risk for stigma [ 33 ]. Stigma is difficult to undo, but research has shown that developing a positive relationship with a healthcare provider or organization can work to reduce stigma among patients, thus promoting healthcare acceptability [ 34 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A qualitative study of rural healthcare providers’ views of social, cultural, and programmatic barriers to healthcare access

Coombs

Campbell

Caringi

2022

BMC Health Serv Res

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Background Ensuring access to healthcare is a complex, multi-dimensional health challenge. Since the inception of the coronavirus pandemic, this challenge is more pressing. Some dimensions of access are difficult to quantify, namely characteristics that influence healthcare services to be both acceptable and appropriate. These link to a patient’s acceptance of services that they are to receive and ensuring appropriate fit between services and a patient’s specific healthcare needs. These dimensions of access are particularly evident in rural health systems where additional structural barriers make accessing healthcare more difficult. Thus, it is important to examine healthcare access barriers in rural-specific areas to understand their origin and implications for resolution. Methods We used qualitative methods and a convenience sample of healthcare providers who currently practice in the rural US state of Montana. Our sample included 12 healthcare providers from diverse training backgrounds and specialties. All were decision-makers in the development or revision of patients’ treatment plans. Semi-structured interviews and content analysis were used to explore barriers–appropriateness and acceptability–to healthcare access in their patient populations. Our analysis was both deductive and inductive and focused on three analytic domains: cultural considerations, patient-provider communication, and provider-provider communication. Member checks ensured credibility and trustworthiness of our findings. Results Five key themes emerged from analysis: 1) a friction exists between aspects of patients’ rural identities and healthcare systems; 2) facilitating access to healthcare requires application of and respect for cultural differences; 3) communication between healthcare providers is systematically fragmented; 4) time and resource constraints disproportionately harm rural health systems; and 5) profits are prioritized over addressing barriers to healthcare access in the US. Conclusions Inadequate access to healthcare is an issue in the US, particularly in rural areas. Rural healthcare consumers compose a hard-to-reach patient population. Too few providers exist to meet population health needs, and fragmented communication impairs rural health systems’ ability to function. These issues exacerbate the difficulty of ensuring acceptable and appropriate delivery of healthcare services, which compound all other barriers to healthcare access for rural residents. Each dimension of access must be monitored to improve patient experiences and outcomes for rural Americans.

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Freedom of choice, expressions of gratitude: Patient experiences of short-term surgical missions in Guatemala

Roche

Brockington²,

Fathima³

et al. 2018

Social Science & Medicine

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Why do patients receive care from a short-term medical mission? Survey study from rural Guatemala

Cited by 3 publications

References 7 publications

Bridging the Gap: Including Patient Voices in Short-Term Medical Mission Evaluations

Bridging the Gap: Including Patient Voices in Short-Term Medical Mission Evaluations

A qualitative study of rural healthcare providers’ views of social, cultural, and programmatic barriers to healthcare access

Freedom of choice, expressions of gratitude: Patient experiences of short-term surgical missions in Guatemala

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