Understanding rural caregivers’ experiences of cancer care when accessing metropolitan cancer services: a qualitative study
Objective To explore the experiences of cancer caregivers who live in rural Australia and travel to a metropolitan cancer health service to access cancer treatment.Design A qualitative study using semistructured, audio-recorded interviews conducted between December 2017 and July 2018 with caregivers...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMJ Publishing Group
2019-07-01
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| Series: | BMJ Open |
| Online Access: | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/7/e028315.full |
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| author | Suzanne K Chambers Sanchia Aranda Patricia M Livingston Anna Boltong Penelope Schofield Meinir Krishnasamy Anna Ugalde Sarah Blaschke Jo Phipps-Nelson |
| author_facet | Suzanne K Chambers Sanchia Aranda Patricia M Livingston Anna Boltong Penelope Schofield Meinir Krishnasamy Anna Ugalde Sarah Blaschke Jo Phipps-Nelson |
| author_sort | Suzanne K Chambers |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objective To explore the experiences of cancer caregivers who live in rural Australia and travel to a metropolitan cancer health service to access cancer treatment.Design A qualitative study using semistructured, audio-recorded interviews conducted between December 2017 and July 2018 with caregivers and social workers. Thematic analysis using interpretative descriptive techniques performed on textual interview data within a critical realist paradigm to develop understanding of rural caregivers’ lived experiences.Setting Participants were from rural areas attending a metropolitan cancer centre in Australia and social workers.Participants 21 caregivers (16 female) of people with cancer living in rural Australia within a minimum distance of 100 km from the metropolitan cancer centre where they access treatment, and five social workers employed at a metropolitan cancer service with experience of working with rural patients and caregivers.Results Thematic analysis developed two overarching themes: theme 1: caregiving in the rural setting describes the unique circumstance in which caregiving for a person with cancer takes place in the rural setting at considerable distance from the cancer service where the person receives treatment. This is explored in three categories: ‘Rural community and culture’, ‘Life adjustments’ and ‘Available supports’. Theme 2: accessing metropolitan cancer services captures the multiplicity of tasks and challenges involved in organising and coordinating the journey to access cancer treatment in a metropolitan hospital, which is presented in the following categories: ‘Travel’, ‘Accommodation’ and ‘Health system navigation’.Conclusions Caregivers who live in rural areas face significant challenges when confronting geographic isolation between their rural home environment and the metropolitan setting, where the patient accessed cancer treatment. There is a need for healthcare services to identify this group to develop feasible and sustainable ways to provide interventions that have the best chance of assisting rural caregivers in supporting the patient while maintaining their own health and well-being. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-fbe8e5666daa468792a629860b9d2d0e |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2044-6055 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2019-07-01 |
| publisher | BMJ Publishing Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMJ Open |
| spelling | doaj-art-fbe8e5666daa468792a629860b9d2d0e2024-11-30T03:15:13ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552019-07-019710.1136/bmjopen-2018-028315Understanding rural caregivers’ experiences of cancer care when accessing metropolitan cancer services: a qualitative studySuzanne K Chambers0Sanchia Aranda1Patricia M Livingston2Anna Boltong3Penelope Schofield4Meinir Krishnasamy5Anna Ugalde6Sarah Blaschke7Jo Phipps-Nelson8Australian Catholic University, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia4 Department of Nursing, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia9 Faculty of Health, Deakin University, Burwood, Victoria, Australia3 Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre, Parkville, Victoria, Australia15 Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia2 Health Services Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia9 Faculty of Health, Deakin University, Burwood, Victoria, AustraliaCancer Experiences Research, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, AustraliaHealth Services Research & Implementation Science, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, AustraliaObjective To explore the experiences of cancer caregivers who live in rural Australia and travel to a metropolitan cancer health service to access cancer treatment.Design A qualitative study using semistructured, audio-recorded interviews conducted between December 2017 and July 2018 with caregivers and social workers. Thematic analysis using interpretative descriptive techniques performed on textual interview data within a critical realist paradigm to develop understanding of rural caregivers’ lived experiences.Setting Participants were from rural areas attending a metropolitan cancer centre in Australia and social workers.Participants 21 caregivers (16 female) of people with cancer living in rural Australia within a minimum distance of 100 km from the metropolitan cancer centre where they access treatment, and five social workers employed at a metropolitan cancer service with experience of working with rural patients and caregivers.Results Thematic analysis developed two overarching themes: theme 1: caregiving in the rural setting describes the unique circumstance in which caregiving for a person with cancer takes place in the rural setting at considerable distance from the cancer service where the person receives treatment. This is explored in three categories: ‘Rural community and culture’, ‘Life adjustments’ and ‘Available supports’. Theme 2: accessing metropolitan cancer services captures the multiplicity of tasks and challenges involved in organising and coordinating the journey to access cancer treatment in a metropolitan hospital, which is presented in the following categories: ‘Travel’, ‘Accommodation’ and ‘Health system navigation’.Conclusions Caregivers who live in rural areas face significant challenges when confronting geographic isolation between their rural home environment and the metropolitan setting, where the patient accessed cancer treatment. There is a need for healthcare services to identify this group to develop feasible and sustainable ways to provide interventions that have the best chance of assisting rural caregivers in supporting the patient while maintaining their own health and well-being.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/7/e028315.full |
| spellingShingle | Suzanne K Chambers Sanchia Aranda Patricia M Livingston Anna Boltong Penelope Schofield Meinir Krishnasamy Anna Ugalde Sarah Blaschke Jo Phipps-Nelson Understanding rural caregivers’ experiences of cancer care when accessing metropolitan cancer services: a qualitative study BMJ Open |
| title | Understanding rural caregivers’ experiences of cancer care when accessing metropolitan cancer services: a qualitative study |
| title_full | Understanding rural caregivers’ experiences of cancer care when accessing metropolitan cancer services: a qualitative study |
| title_fullStr | Understanding rural caregivers’ experiences of cancer care when accessing metropolitan cancer services: a qualitative study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Understanding rural caregivers’ experiences of cancer care when accessing metropolitan cancer services: a qualitative study |
| title_short | Understanding rural caregivers’ experiences of cancer care when accessing metropolitan cancer services: a qualitative study |
| title_sort | understanding rural caregivers experiences of cancer care when accessing metropolitan cancer services a qualitative study |
| url | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/7/e028315.full |
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