An exploration of rural-urban differences in healthcare-seeking trajectories: implications for measures of accessibility

Comparing accessibility between urban and rural areas requires measurement instruments that are equally discriminating in each context. Through focus groups we explored and compared care-seeking trajectories to understand context-specific accessibility barriers and facilitators. Rural care-seekers rely more on telephone access and experience more organizational accommodation but have fewer care options. Urban care-seekers invoke the barrier of distance more frequently. Four consequences of accessibility problems emerged across settings which could be used for valid comparisons of access: having to restart the care-seeking process, abandoning it, using emergency services for primary care, and health deterioration due to delay.
Authors (Zotero)
Haggerty, Jeannie L.; Roberge, Danièle; Lévesque, Jean-Frédéric; Gauthier, Josée; Loignon, Christine
Date (Zotero)
July, 2014