Dataset Information

A qualitative study of the barriers to utilizing healthcare services among the tribal population in Assam.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

We aim to explore the barriers to accessing modern healthcare services in two tribal populations in Assam.

Methods

In March 2018, we conducted qualitative research through 60 in-depth interviews with men and women aged 15 to 50 from Bodo and Rabha tribes in Udalguri and Baksa districts of Assam. We interviewed a group of health-service providers from public health facilities to understand the demand-supply balance in those facilities.

Findings

On the demand side, direct and indirect financial obstacles, distance to health facilities, poor public transportation, perceived negative behavior of hospital staff, and lack of infrastructure were the main barriers to utilizing healthcare facilities. On the supply side, doctors and nurses in government health facilities were overburdened by demand due to a lack of human resources.

Conclusions

Our study highlights the barriers to utilizing health facilities; these are not always driven by factors linked to the patient's socio-economic status but also depend significantly on the quality of the health services and other contextual factors. Although the government has made efforts to improve the rural healthcare system through national-level programs, our qualitative study shows that these programs have not been successful in enhancing the rural healthcare system in the study area.

SUBMITTER: Boro B

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7544062 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

A qualitative study of the barriers to utilizing healthcare services among the tribal population in Assam.

Boro Bandita B Saikia Nandita N

PloS one 20201008 10

<h4>Objective</h4>We aim to explore the barriers to accessing modern healthcare services in two tribal populations in Assam.<h4>Methods</h4>In March 2018, we conducted qualitative research through 60 in-depth interviews with men and women aged 15 to 50 from Bodo and Rabha tribes in Udalguri and Baksa districts of Assam. We interviewed a group of health-service providers from public health facilities to understand the demand-supply balance in those facilities.<h4>Findings</h4>On the demand side, ...[more]

PMID: 33031431

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Project description:BACKGROUND:In recent years, inter-municipal cooperation in healthcare services has been an important measure implemented to meet future demographic changes in western countries. This entails an increased focus on communication and information sharing across organisational borders. Technology enables efficient and effective solutions to enhance such cooperation. However, the systems in the healthcare sector tend not to communicate with one another. There is a lack of literature focusing on communication and information sharing in inter-municipal healthcare services. The aim of this article is to investigate both the characteristics of communication and information sharing, and the factors that serve as barriers to communication and information sharing for employees in inter-municipal healthcare services. METHODS:In this study, a qualitative case study approach is used to investigate both characteristics of communication and information sharing, and factors enabling barriers to communication and information sharing for employees in newly established inter-municipal healthcare services. Data collection methods were individual interviews, focus group interviews, observation studies and a workshop. A total of 18 persons participated in the study. The interviews, observations and workshop were conducted over a period of ten months. RESULTS:Communication and information sharing practices were found to be complex and characterised by multiple actors, information types and a combination of multiple actions. Findings indicate that 1. IT capability and usability 2. Differences 3. Privacy, confidentiality and security and 4. Awareness are all factors enabling barriers to communication and information sharing in inter-municipal healthcare services. Specifically, these barriers were related to lack of EHR usability, inadequate workflow processes, digital systems incompatibility, the understanding of needs in different systems and knowledge and practices regarding privacy and confidentiality. CONCLUSION:By focusing on the context of inter-municipal cooperation when assessing communication and information sharing in healthcare services, this article contributes to close a gap in existing knowledge. The perspective of the employees provides useful insight, and findings can be relevant for future theory development and for managers and policymakers in inter-municipal services.

Project description:BackgroundPeople with problems in functioning following severe injury or illness often need multiple and combined interventions in their rehabilitation processes. In these processes, communication and collaboration between the involved healthcare professionals are essential. Despite efforts in research and policy, communication across hospital and primary healthcare services and within the primary healthcare settings remains challenging. In one region of Norway, a new intermunicipal rehabilitation team has been established to supplement the traditional services and context-bound research is needed to gain insight into the complexity of the new communication structures that are developing. The aim of this study was to explore facilitators and barriers to communication to inform further improvement of the services.MethodsA qualitative case study design was used to explore the exchange of patient information in the rehabilitation processes of four patients. Data collection included participant observations in communication situations and an exploration of the electronic patient records of these four patients. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to analyse the empirical data.ResultsThe complex rehabilitation processes explored involved a large number of actors across healthcare organisational levels. Lacking a common culture for rehabilitation, poor access to written information and unclear responsibility for sharing information across organisational boundaries seemed to represent barriers to interprofessional communication. Joint meetings, the use of common rehabilitation tools and language and establishing informal communication channels served to facilitate communication.ConclusionThe intermunicipal team collaborating across different organisational levels added complexity to communication structures, but also facilitated interprofessional communication by promoting formal and informal ways of exchanging information. However, the intricate organisational divisions of healthcare provision in the Norwegian context represent boundaries which can be difficult to overcome. Therefore, cross-organisational coordination services should be developed.

Dataset Information

A qualitative study of the barriers to utilizing healthcare services among the tribal population in Assam.

Objective

Methods

Findings

Conclusions

Publications

A qualitative study of the barriers to utilizing healthcare services among the tribal population in Assam.

Similar Datasets

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