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Original Research

Perceptions of engagement in health care among patients with tuberculosis: a qualitative study

, , , , , , & show all
Pages 107-117 | Published online: 11 Jan 2019
 

Abstract

Purpose

Adherence to treatment is cited as a key challenge in fighting tuberculosis (TB). Treatment of TB requires patients to actively engage in their care. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of patients with TB regarding their engagement in health care.

Patients and methods

The study was conducted in three medical wards in one hospital. Purposive sampling was used to recruit participants. Semi-structured, audiotaped interviews were conducted and analyzed using thematic analysis.

Results

Twenty-three patients participated in the study. Four major themes emerged: 1) devaluing engagement; 2) interacting with health care providers (HCPs); 3) facing inability; and 4) seeking external support.

Conclusion

The patients’ perceptions of their engagement in health care were generally negative. Paying attention to the preferences and needs of patients and making decisions accordingly are effective strategies for promoting patient engagement. Moreover, HCPs should be aware of their crucial role in helping patients make sense of what engagement is and how to engage. In the process of engagement, providers should establish effective interactions with patients and cooperate with family and peers.

Supplementary material

Table S1 COREQ checklist

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the 23 patients for sharing their hospitalized experiences and providing their valuable opinions.

The authors also thank the hospital settings authorities for their powerful support. This research was supported by National Science Foundation of China (grant number: 71774131). The fund supported to complete the study design, data collection and interpretation, writing, and translation of the manuscript.

Author contributions

JR, SRZ, and XML planned and designed the study. The study was supervised by SRZ. JR and THZ contributed to the data collection. All authors contributed to the data analysis and the drafting and revising of the paper gave final approval of the revision to be published, and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.