“在两周内为我做的比我一生中任何人都多。”福利权利咨询如何帮助癌症患者。
"Done more for me in a fortnight than anybody done in all me life." How welfare rights advice can help people with cancer.
机构信息
Faculty of Medical Sciences, Baddiley-Clarke Building, Institute of Health & Society, Newcastle University, Richardson Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4AX, UK.
出版信息
BMC Health Serv Res. 2010 Sep 3;10:259. doi: 10.1186/1472-6963-10-259.
BACKGROUND
In the UK many people with cancer and their carers do not have easy access to the welfare benefits to which they are entitled adding further strain to the process of dealing with cancer. It is estimated that nine out of ten cancer patients' households experience loss of income as a direct result of cancer, which, due to its socio-economic patterning disproportionately affects those most likely to be financially disadvantaged. In the UK proactive welfare rights advice services accessed via health care settings significantly increase benefit entitlement among people with health problems and this paper reports on a qualitative study examining the impact of a welfare rights advice service specifically designed for people affected by cancer and their carers in County Durham, North East England (UK).
METHODS
Twenty two men and women with cancer or caring for someone with cancer who were recipients of welfare rights advice aged between 35 and 83 were recruited from a variety of health care and community settings. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken and analysed using the Framework method.
RESULTS
Most of the participants experienced financial strain following their cancer diagnosis. Participants accessed the welfare rights service in a variety of ways, but mainly through referral by other professionals. The additional income generated by successful benefit claims was used in a number of ways and included offsetting additional costs associated with cancer and lessening the impact of loss of earnings. Overall, receiving welfare rights advice eased feelings of stress over financial issues at a time when participants were concerned about dealing with the impact of cancer. Lack of knowledge about benefit entitlements was the main barrier to accessing benefits, and this outweighed attitudinal factors such as stigma and concerns about benefit fraud.
CONCLUSIONS
Financial strain resulting from a cancer diagnosis is compounded in the UK by lack of easy access to information about benefit entitlements and assistance to claim. Proactive welfare rights advice services, working closely with health and social care professionals can assist with the practical demands that arise from dealing with the illness and should be considered an important part of a holistic approach to cancer treatment.
背景
在英国，许多癌症患者及其护理人员难以获得他们有权享受的福利，这给他们应对癌症的过程带来了更大的压力。据估计，十分之九的癌症患者家庭因癌症而直接失去收入，由于其社会经济模式，这 disproportionately 地影响了那些最有可能处于经济劣势的人。在英国，通过医疗保健机构提供的积极福利权益咨询服务显著增加了有健康问题的人的福利权益，本文报告了一项定性研究，该研究检查了专门为癌症患者及其护理人员设计的福利权益咨询服务在英格兰东北部达勒姆郡（英国）的影响。
方法
从各种医疗保健和社区环境中招募了 22 名年龄在 35 岁至 83 岁之间的接受过福利权益咨询的癌症患者或照顾癌症患者的男女。进行了半结构化访谈，并使用框架方法进行分析。
结果
大多数参与者在癌症诊断后都经历了经济压力。参与者以各种方式获得福利权益服务，但主要是通过其他专业人员的转介。成功申请福利所产生的额外收入用于多种用途，包括抵消与癌症相关的额外费用和减轻收入损失的影响。总体而言，在参与者关注癌症影响的同时，获得福利权益咨询减轻了他们对财务问题的压力。缺乏对福利权益的了解是获得福利的主要障碍，这超过了态度因素，如耻辱感和对福利欺诈的担忧。
结论
在英国，由于缺乏有关福利权益的易获取信息和申请援助，癌症诊断导致的经济压力更加严重。积极的福利权益咨询服务与卫生和社会保健专业人员密切合作，可以帮助应对与疾病相关的实际需求，应被视为癌症治疗整体方法的重要组成部分。
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