scholarly journals The PUPPY Study - Protocol for a Longitudinal Mixed Methods Study Exploring Problems Coordinating and Accessing Primary Care for Attached and Unattached Patients Exacerbated During the COVID-19 Pandemic Year

Author(s):  
Emily Gard Marshall ◽  
Mylaine Breton ◽  
Benoit Cossette ◽  
Jennifer Isenor ◽  
Maria Mathews ◽  
...  

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted primary care in Canada, with many walk-in clinics and family practices initially closing or being perceived as inaccessible, pharmacies remaining open with restrictions on patient interactions, rapid uptake of virtual care, and reduced referrals for lab tests, diagnostics, and specialist care. The PUPPY Study seeks to understand the impact of COVID-19 across the quadruple aim of primary care, with particular focus on the impacts on patients without attachment to a regular provider and those with chronic health conditions. Methods: The PUPPY study builds on an existing research program exploring patient access and attachment to primary care, pivoted to adapt to the emerging COVID-19 context. We will undertake a longitudinal mixed methods study to understand critical gaps in primary care access and coordination, comparing data pre- and post-pandemic in three Canadian provinces (Quebec, Ontario, and Nova Scotia). Multiple data sources will be used including: a policy review; qualitative interviews with primary care policymakers, providers (i.e., family physicians, nurse practitioners, and pharmacists), and patients (N=120); and medication prescribing and healthcare billings. The findings will inform the strengthening of primary care during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. Interpretation: This is the first study of its kind exploring the impacts of COVID-19 on primary care systems, with particular focus on the issues of patient's attachment and access to primary care. Our multi-stakeholder, cross-jurisdictional team will collaborate to rapidly disseminate findings and share implications for future policy and practice.

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (8) ◽  
pp. 1307-1316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Dorr Goold ◽  
Renuka Tipirneni ◽  
Edith Kieffer ◽  
Adrianne Haggins ◽  
Cengiz Salman ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 84-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monique T. Mills ◽  
Leslie C. Moore ◽  
Rong Chang ◽  
Somin Kim ◽  
Bethany Frick

Purpose In this mixed-methods study, we address two aims. First, we examine the impact of language variation on the ratings of children's narrative language. Second, we identify participants' ideologies related to narrative language and language variation. Method Forty adults listened to and rated six Black second-grade children on the quality of 12 narratives (six fictional, six personal). Adults then completed a quantitative survey and participated in a qualitative interview. Results Findings indicated that adults rated students with less variation from mainstream American English (MAE) more highly than students with greater variation from MAE for fictional narratives, but not for personal narratives. Personal narratives tended to be evaluated more favorably by parents than teachers. Black raters tended to assign higher ratings of narrative quality than did White raters. Thematic analysis and conversation analysis of qualitative interviews supported quantitative findings and provided pertinent information about participants' beliefs. Conclusion Taken together, quantitative and qualitative results point to a shared language ideology among adult raters of variation from MAE being more acceptable in informal contexts, such as telling a story of personal experience, and less acceptable in more formal contexts, such as narrating a fictional story prompted by a picture sequence.


2022 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle S. Rockwell ◽  
Kenan C. Michaels ◽  
John W. Epling

Abstract Background The importance of reducing low-value care (LVC) is increasingly recognized, but the impact of de-implementation on the patient-clinician relationship is not well understood. This mixed-methods study explored the impact of LVC de-implementation on the patient-clinician relationship. Methods Adult primary care patients from a large Virginia health system volunteered to participate in a survey (n = 232) or interview (n = 24). Participants completed the Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire (PDRQ-9) after reading a vignette about a clinician declining to provide a low-value service: antibiotics for acute sinusitis (LVC-antibiotics); screening EKG (LVC-EKG); screening vitamin D test (LVC-vitamin D); or an alternate vignette about a high-value service, and imagining that their own primary care clinician had acted in the same manner. A different sample of participants was asked to imagine that their own primary care clinician did not order LVC-antibiotics or LVC-EKG and then respond to semi-structured interview questions. Outcomes data included participant demographics, PDRQ-9 scores (higher score = greater relationship integrity), and content analysis of transcribed interviews. Differences in PDRQ-9 scores were analyzed using one-way ANOVA. Data were integrated for analysis and interpretation. Results Although participants generally agreed with the vignette narrative (not providing LVC), many demonstrated difficulty comprehending the broad concept of LVC and potential harms. The topic triggered memories of negative experiences with healthcare (typically poor-quality care, not necessarily LVC). The most common recommendation for reducing LVC was for patients to take greater responsibility for their own health. Most participants believed that their relationship with their clinician would not be negatively impacted by denial of LVC because they trusted their clinician’s guidance. Participants emphasized that trusted clinicians are those who listen to them, spend time with them, and offer understandable advice. Some felt that not providing LVC would actually increase their trust in their clinician. Similar PDRQ-9 scores were observed for LVC-antibiotics (38.9), LVC-EKG (37.5), and the alternate vignette (36.4), but LVC-vitamin D was associated with a significantly lower score (31.2) (p < 0.05). Conclusions In this vignette-based study, we observed minimal impact of LVC de-implementation on the patient-clinician relationship, although service-specific differences surfaced. Further situation-based research is needed to confirm study findings.


2017 ◽  
Vol 67 (660) ◽  
pp. e507-e518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Clyne ◽  
Janine A Cooper ◽  
Fiona Boland ◽  
Carmel M Hughes ◽  
Tom Fahey ◽  
...  

BackgroundPolypharmacy (≥5 medications) is common in older patients and is associated with adverse outcomes. Patients’ beliefs about medication can influence their expectations for medication, adherence, and willingness to deprescribe. Few studies have examined beliefs about prescribed medication among older patients with polypharmacy in primary care.AimTo explore medication-related beliefs in older patients with polypharmacy and factors that might influence beliefs.Design and settingA mixed methods study utilising data from a randomised controlled trial aiming to decrease potentially inappropriate prescribing in older patients (≥70 years) in Ireland.MethodBeliefs were assessed quantitatively and qualitatively. Participants completed the Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire by indicating their degree of agreement with individual statements about medicines on a 5-point Likert scale. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of participants. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and a thematic analysis conducted. Quantitative and qualitative data were analysed separately and triangulated during the interpretation stage.ResultsIn total, 196 patients were included (mean age 76.7 years, SD 4.9, 54% male), with a mean of 9.5 (SD 4.1) medications per patient. The majority (96.3%) believed strongly in the necessity of their medication, while 33.9% reported strong concerns. Qualitative data confirmed these coexisting positive and negative attitudes to medications and suggested the importance of patients’ trust in GPs in establishing positive beliefs and potential willingness to deprescribe.ConclusionParticipants reported strong beliefs in medications with coexisting positive and negative attitudes. The doctor–patient relationship may have influenced beliefs and attitudes towards medicines, highlighting the importance of strong doctor–patient relationships, which need to be considered in the context of deprescribing.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle S. Rockwell ◽  
Kenan C. Michaels ◽  
John W. Epling

Abstract Background: The importance of reducing low-value care (LVC) is increasingly recognized, but the impact of de-implementation on the patient-clinician relationship is not well understood. This mixed-methods study explored the impact of LVC de-implementation on the patient-clinician relationship. Methods: Adult primary care patients from a large Virginia health system volunteered to participate in a survey (n=232) or interview (n=24). Participants completed the Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire (PDRQ-9) after reading a vignette about a clinician declining to provide a low-value service: antibiotics for acute sinusitis (LVC-antibiotics); screening EKG (LVC-EKG); screening vitamin D test (LVC-vitamin D); or a comparison vignette about a high-value service, and imagining that their own primary care clinician had acted in the same manner. A different sample of participants was asked to imagine that their own primary care clinician did not order LVC-antibiotics or LVC-EKG and then respond to semi-structured interview questions. Outcomes data included participant demographics, PDRQ-9 scores (higher score = greater relationship integrity), and content analysis of transcribed interviews. Differences in PDRQ-9 scores were analyzed using one-way ANOVA. Data were integrated for analysis and interpretation. Results: Although participants generally agreed with the vignette narrative (not providing LVC), many demonstrated difficulty comprehending the broad concept of LVC and potential harms. The topic triggered memories of negative experiences with healthcare (typically poor-quality care, not necessarily LVC). The most common recommendation for reducing LVC was for patients to take greater responsibility for their own health. Most participants believed that their relationship with their clinician would not be negatively impacted by not receiving the described service because they trusted their clinician’s guidance. Participants emphasized that trusted clinicians are those who listen to them, spend time with them, and offer understandable advice. Some felt that not providing LVC would actually increase their trust in their clinician. Similar PDRQ-9 scores were observed for LVC-antibiotics (38.9), LVC-EKG (37.5), and the comparison vignette (36.4), but LVC-vitamin D was associated with a significantly lower score (31.2) (p<0.05). Conclusions: Findings suggest minimal impact of LVC de-implementation on the patient-clinician relationship, although service-specific differences may exist. Further research on enhancing patient trust through LVC de-implementation is needed.


Author(s):  
Aduragbemi Banke-Thomas ◽  
Kikelomo Wright ◽  
Olatunji Sonoiki ◽  
Onaedo Ilozumba ◽  
Babatunde Ajayi ◽  
...  

Globally, Nigeria is the second most unsafe country to be pregnant, with Lagos, its economic nerve center having disproportionately higher maternal deaths than the national average. Emergency obstetric care (EmOC) is effective in reducing pregnancyrelated morbidities and mortalities. This mixed-methods study quantitatively assessed women’s satisfaction with EmOC received and qualitatively engaged multiple key stakeholders to better understand issues around EmOC access, availability and utilization in Lagos. Qualitative interviews revealed that regarding access, while government opined that EmOC facilities have been strategically built across Lagos, women flagged issues with difficulty in access, compounded by perceived high EmOC cost. For availability, though health workers were judged competent, they appeared insufficient, overworked and felt poorly remunerated. Infrastructure was considered inadequate and paucity of blood and blood products remained commonplace. Although pregnant women positively rated the clinical aspects of care, as confirmed by the survey, satisfaction gaps remained in the areas of service delivery, care organization and responsiveness. These areas of discordance offer insight to opportunities for improvements, which would ensure that every woman can access and use quality EmOC that is sufficiently available.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
pp. 215013272110237
Author(s):  
Patricia A. Carney ◽  
W. Perry Dickinson ◽  
Jay Fetter ◽  
Eric J. Warm ◽  
Brenda Zierler ◽  
...  

Introduction/Objectives: Coaching is emerging as a form of facilitation in health professions education. Most studies focus on one-on-one coaching rather than team coaching. We assessed the experiences of interprofessional teams coached to simultaneously improve primary care residency training and interprofessional practice. Methods: This three-year exploratory mixed methods study included transformational assistance from 9 interprofessional coaches, one assigned to each of 9 interprofessional primary care teams that included family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, nursing, pharmacy and behavioral health. Coaches interacted with teams during 2 in-person training sessions, an in-person site visit, and then as requested by their teams. Surveys administered at 1 year and end study assessed the coaching relationship and process. Results: The majority of participants (82% at end of Year 1 and 76.6% at end study) agreed or strongly agreed that their coach developed a positive working relationship with their team. Participants indicated coaches helped them: (1) develop as teams, (2) stay on task, and (3) respond to local context issues, with between 54.3% and 69.2% agreeing or strongly agreeing that their coaches were helpful in these areas. Cronbach’s alpha for the 15 coaching survey items was 0.965. Challenges included aligning the coach’s expertise with the team’s needs. Conclusions: While team coaching was well received by interprofessional teams of primary care professionals undertaking educational and clinical redesign, the 3 primary care disciplines have much to learn from each other regarding how to improve inter- and intra-professional collaborative practice among clinicians and staff as well as with interprofessional learners rotating through their outpatient clinics.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jocelyn Lebow ◽  
Cassandra Narr ◽  
Angela Mattke ◽  
Janna R. Gewirtz O’Brien ◽  
Marcie Billings ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The primary care setting offers an attractive opportunity for, not only the identification of pediatric eating disorders, but also the delivery of evidence-based treatment. However, constraints of this setting pose barriers for implementing treatment. For interventions to be successful, they need to take into consideration the perspectives of stakeholders. As such, the purpose of this study was to examine in-depth primary care providers’ perspective of challenges to identifying and managing eating disorders in the primary care setting. Methods This mixed methods study surveyed 60 Pediatric and Family Medicine providers across 6 primary care practices. Sixteen of these providers were further interviewed using a qualitative, semi-structured interview. Results Providers (n = 60, response rate of 45%) acknowledged the potential of primary care as a point of contact for early identification and treatment of pediatric eating disorders. They also expressed that this was an area of need in their practices. They identified numerous barriers to successful implementation of evidence-based treatment in this setting including scarcity of time, knowledge, and resources. Conclusions Investigations seeking to build capacities in primary care settings to address eating disorders must address these barriers.


BMC Nursing ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shahram Zaheer ◽  
Liane Ginsburg ◽  
Hannah J. Wong ◽  
Kelly Thomson ◽  
Lorna Bain ◽  
...  

Abstract Background This study contributes to a small but growing body of literature on how context influences perceptions of patient safety in healthcare settings. We examine the impact of senior leadership support for safety, supervisory leadership support for safety, teamwork, and turnover intention on overall patient safety grade. Interaction effects of predictors on perceptions of patient safety are also examined. Methods In this mixed methods study, cross-sectional survey data (N = 185) were collected from nurses and non-physician healthcare professionals. Semi-structured interview data (N = 15) were collected from nurses. The study participants worked in intensive care, general medicine, mental health, or the emergency department of a large community hospital in Southern Ontario. Results Hierarchical regression analyses showed that staff perceptions of senior leadership (p < 0.001), teamwork (p < 0.01), and turnover intention (p < 0.01) were significantly associated with overall patient safety grade. The interactive effect of teamwork and turnover intention on overall patient safety grade was also found to be significant (p < 0.05). The qualitative findings corroborated the survey results but also helped expand the characteristics of the study’s key concepts (e.g., teamwork within and across professional boundaries) and why certain statistical relationships were found to be non-significant (e.g., nurse interviewees perceived the safety specific responsibilities of frontline supervisors much more broadly compared to the narrower conceptualization of the construct in the survey). Conclusions The results of the current study suggest that senior leadership, teamwork, and turnover intention significantly impact nursing staff perceptions of patient safety. Leadership is a modifiable contextual factor and resources should be dedicated to strengthen relational competencies of healthcare leaders. Healthcare organizations must also proactively foster inter and intra-professional collaboration by providing teamwork educational workshops or other on-site learning opportunities (e.g., simulation training). Healthcare organizations would benefit by considering the interactive effect of contextual factors as another lever for patient safety improvement, e.g., lowering staff turnover intentions would maximize the positive impact of teamwork improvement initiatives on patient safety.


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