Department of Apparel, Events, and Hospitality Management, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2013 Aug 19;10(8):3684-714. doi: 10.3390/ijerph10083684.
During 2009-2010, a total of 1,527 foodborne disease outbreaks were reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2013). However, in a 2011 CDC report, Scallan et al. estimated about 48 million people contract a foodborne illness annually in the United States. Public health officials are concerned with this under-reporting; thus, the purpose of this study was to identify why consumers and healthcare professionals don't report foodborne illness. Focus groups were conducted with 35 consumers who reported a previous experience with foodborne illness and with 16 healthcare professionals. Also, interviews with other healthcare professionals with responsibility of diagnosing foodborne illness were conducted. Not knowing who to contact, being too ill, being unsure of the cause, and believing reporting would not be beneficial were all identified by consumers as reasons for not reporting foodborne illness. Healthcare professionals that participated in the focus groups indicated the amount of time between patients' consumption of food and seeking treatment and lack of knowledge were barriers to diagnosing foodborne illness. Issues related to stool samples such as knowledge, access and cost were noted by both groups. Results suggest that barriers identified could be overcome with targeted education and improved access and information about the reporting process.
在 2009 年至 2010 年期间，疾病预防控制中心（CDC）（2013 年）共报告了 1527 起食源性疾病暴发。然而，在 2011 年 CDC 的一份报告中，Scallan 等人估计，每年约有 4800 万人在美国感染食源性疾病。公共卫生官员对这种漏报感到担忧；因此，本研究的目的是确定为什么消费者和医疗保健专业人员不报告食源性疾病。对 35 名报告过食源性疾病既往经历的消费者和 16 名医疗保健专业人员进行了焦点小组讨论，还对负责诊断食源性疾病的其他医疗保健专业人员进行了访谈。消费者认为不知道联系谁、病得太重、不确定病因以及认为报告没有好处，都是不报告食源性疾病的原因。参加焦点小组的医疗保健专业人员表示，从患者食用食物到寻求治疗的时间以及缺乏知识是诊断食源性疾病的障碍。两组人员都注意到与粪便样本相关的问题，如知识、获取途径和费用。结果表明，通过有针对性的教育以及改善报告流程的获取途径和信息，可以克服确定的障碍。
