Fraenkel Liana, McGraw Sarah, Wongcharatrawee Suchat, Garcia-Tsao Guadalupe
VA Connecticut Healthcare System, CT, USA.
Patient Educ Couns. 2006 Jul;62(1):148-55. doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2005.06.019. Epub 2005 Aug 10.
To conduct a qualitative study to elicit patients' descriptions of their own experiences with treatment for hepatitis C (HCV).
Focus groups were conducted until thematic saturation was reached.
A total of 40 patients (80% male) participated in eight focus groups. The themes that emerged most frequently during the focus groups centered on adverse effects and quality of care. The discussions highlighted discrepancies between patients' anticipated effects of drug toxicity versus their actual experiences, gaps in communication between physicians, and the lack of social support as important shortcomings in the healthcare of HCV patients.
The issues raised by the participants in this study highlight several important areas that may lead to improved care for patients with HCV.
This study suggests that care for patients with HCV might be improved by using patient testimonials to improve accuracy of expectations, having both the primary care physician and liver specialist devise a plan to treat symptoms arising during the course of therapy, and ensuring that patients have the option of participating in a support group.
开展一项定性研究，以了解患者对自身丙型肝炎（HCV）治疗经历的描述。
进行焦点小组访谈，直至达到主题饱和。
共有40名患者（80%为男性）参与了8个焦点小组。焦点小组中最常出现的主题集中在不良反应和护理质量上。讨论强调了患者预期的药物毒性影响与实际经历之间的差异、医生之间沟通的差距以及缺乏社会支持是HCV患者医疗保健中的重要不足。
本研究参与者提出的问题突出了几个可能改善HCV患者护理的重要领域。
本研究表明，通过使用患者的推荐来提高期望的准确性、让初级保健医生和肝脏专家共同制定治疗过程中出现症状的计划以及确保患者能够选择参加支持小组，可能会改善HCV患者的护理。
