Satisfaction with Primary Care Providers and Health Care Services Among Patients with Chronic Pain: a Mixed-Methods Stud
- PDF / 482,111 Bytes
- 8 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 54 Downloads / 228 Views
Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research, Portland, OR, USA; 2Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA.
BACKGROUND: Chronic pain is a prevalent health concern in the United States (US) and a frequent reason for patients to seek primary care. The challenges associated with developing effective pain management strategies can be perceived as a burden on the patient-provider relationship. OBJECTIVE: This study explored the relationship between patients’ overall satisfaction with their primary care providers (PCPs) and their satisfaction with their chronic pain treatment, as well as the provider behaviors that contributed to chronic pain patients’ satisfaction with their PCPs. DESIGN: Concurrent nested mixed-methods design PARTICIPANTS: 97 patients with chronic pain who were assigned to the usual care arm of the Pain Program for Active Coping and Training (PPACT) study. APPROACH: We analyzed phone interview and survey data (n = 97). Interviews assessed provider behaviors that led to patient satisfaction. Interview transcripts were analyzed based on a content analysis approach. Survey responses assessed patient satisfaction with primary care and pain services. We calculated a Pearson’s correlation coefficient using five response categories. KEY RESULTS: Interviews revealed that high satisfaction with primary care was driven by five concrete PCP behaviors: (1) listening, (2) maintaining communication with patients, (3) acting as an access point to comprehensive pain care, (4) providing an honest assessment of the possibilities of pain care, and (5) taking time during consultations with patients. In surveys, participants reported higher satisfaction with their primary care services than with the pain services they received; these variables were only moderately correlated (r = 0.586). CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that patients with chronic pain can view the relationship with their PCPs as positive, even in the face of low satisfaction with their pain treatment. The expectations that these patients held of PCPs could be met regardless of providers’ ability to successfully relieve chronic pain.
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-019-05339-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Received November 28, 2018 Revised July 3, 2019 Accepted August 21, 2019
KEY WORDS: primary care relationship; chronic pain; treatment satisfaction; mixed methods. J Gen Intern Med DOI: 10.1007/s11606-019-05339-2 © Society of General Internal Medicine 2019
INTRODUCTION
Approximately 20% of US adults report chronic pain1–4; it is one of the most frequent reasons patients seek medical care.3, 5 Chronic pain disproportionately impacts women and older adults,2 and most individuals with chronic pain also experience comorbid medical and mental health conditions.6–8 Primary care providers (PCPs) deliver the majority of care for chronic pain.9 Unfortunately, accessing effective treatment options for chronic pain can be c
Data Loading...
