A study published in Patient Preference and Adherence examined the barriers to care people with multiple chronic conditions face when undergoing colonoscopy.
Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Health Care System's Shahnaz Sultan, MD, and colleagues conducted a semistructured focus group of 44 individuals between 51- and 83-years-old scheduled to complete an outpatient colonoscopy. They either failed to complete the procedure or the examination.
Participants had 7.4 chronic conditions on average. The most common conditions were hypertension, hyperlipidemia, osteoarthritis/degenerative joint diseases, atherosclerotic heart disease and diabetes mellitus.
Here's what they found.
1. Researchers cited four themes that influenced patients' motivation to complete a colonoscopy. They are:
- Competing medical priorities
- Low perceived benefit
- Prior negative colonoscopy experiences
- Pre-existing medical conditions
2. The researchers also cited four themes that stopped patients from completing a colonoscopy. They are:
- Bowel cleansing difficulty
- Travel difficulties
- Worry about exacerbating pre-existing conditions
- Heightened concerns about complications
Researchers concluded patients with multiple chronic conclusions faced many barriers to completing a colonoscopy. They identified further opportunities centered around increasing educational interventions and better supporting the patients.