Access to care for childhood cancers in India: perspectives of health care providers and the implications for universal health coverage

BMC Public Health

Jennifer Lowe¹  Ramandeep Arora²  Avram Denburg³  Neha Faruqui⁴  Seye Abimbola⁵  Alexandra Martiniuk⁶  Rohina Joshi⁷  Sarah Bernays⁸ 

[1] Cankids … Kidscan, New Delhi, India;Cankids … Kidscan, New Delhi, India;Max Super Speciality Hospital, New Delhi, India;Division of Haematology/Oncology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada;Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada;Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia;Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia;George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, NSW, Australia;Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia;George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, NSW, Australia;Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada;Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia;George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, NSW, Australia;Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia;George Institute for Global Health, New Delhi, India;Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia;London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK;

关键词: Qualitative study;    India;    Childhood cancer;    Health care provider;    Accessing care;    Barriers;    Universal health coverage;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12889-020-09758-3

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundThere are multiple barriers impeding access to childhood cancer care in the Indian health system. Understanding what the barriers are, how various stakeholders perceive these barriers and what influences their perceptions are essential in improving access to care, thereby contributing towards achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC). This study aims to explore the challenges for accessing childhood cancer care through health care provider perspectives in India.MethodsThis study was conducted in 7 tertiary cancer hospitals (3 public, 3 private and 1 charitable trust hospital) across Delhi and Hyderabad. We recruited 27 healthcare providers involved in childhood cancer care. Semi-structured interviews were audio recorded after obtaining informed consent. A thematic and inductive approach to content analysis was conducted and organised using NVivo 11 software.ResultsParticipants described a constellation of interconnected barriers to accessing care such as insufficient infrastructure and supportive care, patient knowledge and awareness, sociocultural beliefs, and weak referral pathways. However, these barriers were reflected upon differently based on participant perception through three key influences: 1) the type of hospital setting: public hospitals constituted more barriers such as patient navigation issues and inadequate health workforce, whereas charitable trust and private hospitals were better equipped to provide services. 2) the participant’s cadre: the nature of the participant’s role meant a different degree of exposure to the challenges families faced, where for example, social workers provided more in-depth accounts of barriers from their day-to-day interactions with families, compared to oncologists. 3) individual perceptions within cadres: regardless of the hospital setting or cadre, participants expressed individual varied opinions of barriers such as acceptance of delay and recognition of stakeholder accountabilities, where governance was a major issue. These influences alluded to not only tangible and structural barriers but also intangible barriers which are part of service provision and stakeholder relationships.ConclusionAlthough participants acknowledged that accessing childhood cancer care in India is limited by several barriers, perceptions of these barriers varied. Our findings illustrate that health care provider perceptions are shaped by their experiences, interests and standpoints, which are useful towards informing policy for childhood cancers within UHC.

【 授权许可】

CC BY