Is it me? The impact of patient-physician interactions on lupus patients' psychological well-being, cognition and health-care-seeking behaviour

Sloan, Melanie, Naughton, Felix, Harwood, Rupert, Lever, Elliott, D’Cruz, David, Sutton, Stephen, Walia, Chanpreet, Howard, Paul and Gordon, Caroline (2020) Is it me? The impact of patient-physician interactions on lupus patients' psychological well-being, cognition and health-care-seeking behaviour. Rheumatology Advances in Practice, 4 (2). ISSN 2514-1775

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Abstract

Objective. The aim was to explore the impact of patient-physician interactions, pre- and postdiagnosis, on lupus and UCTD patients' psychological well-being, cognition and health-care-seeking behaviour. Methods. Participants were purposively sampled from the 233 responses to a survey on patient experiences of medical support. Twenty-one semi-structured interviews were conducted and themes generated using thematic analysis. Results. The study identified six principal themes: (i) the impact of the diagnostic journey; (ii) the influence of key physician(s) on patient trust and security, with most participants reporting at least one positive medical relationship; (iii) disparities in patient-physician priorities, with patients desiring more support with quality-of-life concerns; (iv) persisting insecurity and distrust, which was prevalent and largely influenced by previous and anticipated disproportionate (often perceived as dismissive) physician responses to symptoms and experiences of widespread inadequate physician knowledge of systemic autoimmune diseases; (v) changes to health-care-seeking behaviours, such as curtailing help-seeking or under-reporting symptoms; and (vi) empowerment, including shared medical decisionmaking and knowledge acquisition, which can mitigate insecurity and improve care. Conclusion. Negative medical interactions pre- and post-diagnosis can cause a loss of selfconfidence and a loss of confidence and trust in the medical profession. This insecurity can persist even in subsequent positive medical relationships and should be addressed. Key physicians implementing empowering and security-inducing strategies, including being available in times of health crises and validating patient-reported symptoms, might lead to more trusting medical relationships and positive health-care-seeking behaviour.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: behaviour,patient-physician interactions,psychology,quality of life,systemic lupus erythematosus,well-being,rheumatology,sdg 3 - good health and well-being ,/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/2700/2745
UEA Research Groups: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Behavioural and Implementation Science
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Health Promotion
Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Centres > Lifespan Health
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Depositing User: LivePure Connector
Date Deposited: 18 Aug 2020 23:56
Last Modified: 22 May 2024 15:30
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/76482
DOI: 10.1093/rap/rkaa037

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