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Populations’ Preferences Regarding Health Care Service Delivery Patterns in Rural Areas in Western Germany—a Preliminary Survey Based on Focus Groups

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Abstract

Residents in rural communities increasingly face shortages in health care service. Consequently, German municipalities are driven by a strong attempt to transform care trajectories in rural areas. This qualitative study aims to identify the preferences of rural community residents towards the future service provision. Semi-structured focus group interviews were performed by means of a structured interview guide developed on the basis of a systematic literature review on expectations towards the provision of health care service. Participants were recruited in three rural communities in Western Germany. In total, three focus group interviews including 21 participants were performed. Overall, the interviews resulted in ten attributes grouped in three major domains: access to care, service delivery characteristics, and service costs. The rural population in Germany rejects outpatient care performed by hospitals and favors the provision of health care services by familiar doctor offices and occasionally interprofessional forms of outpatient care. Focus groups are an effective means to categorize preferences of the general population regarding outpatient health care service delivery patterns.

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Funding

This study was funded by the Leibniz Science Campus Ruhr (member of Leibniz Association, Berlin, Germany) grant no. SAS-2016-RWI-LWC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department for Health Policy and Health Economics, AOK Rheinland/Hamburg (Sickness Fund), Kasernenstr 61, 40213, Düsseldorf, Germany

    Sibel Altin

  2. Institute for Health Care Management and Research, University of Duisburg-Essen, Thea-Leymann-Straße 9, 45127, Essen, Germany

    Anke Walendzik, Michael Noweski, Laura Krabbe & Jürgen Wasem

  3. Robert Koch Institute (Institute within the portfolio of the Federal Ministry of Health), Nordufer 20, 13353, Berlin, Germany

    Barbara Buchberger

Authors
  1. Sibel Altin
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  2. Anke Walendzik
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  3. Michael Noweski
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  4. Laura Krabbe
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  5. Barbara Buchberger
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  6. Jürgen Wasem
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Contributions

All authors of this study developed the conception and design of the work, contributed to the application for funding, and conducted the interpretation of the data. Specifically, Sibel Altin and Anke Walendzik prepared and conducted the focus groups. The transcriptions, the analysis of the data, and the production of the manuscript were made by Sibel Altin, Michael Noweski, Anke Walendzik, Laura Krabbe, Barbara Buchberger, and Jürgen Wasem.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael Noweski.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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The ethical review board of the University of Duisburg-Essen did not request an ethical approval.

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Altin, S., Walendzik, A., Noweski, M. et al. Populations’ Preferences Regarding Health Care Service Delivery Patterns in Rural Areas in Western Germany—a Preliminary Survey Based on Focus Groups. SN Compr. Clin. Med. 2, 1526–1533 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42399-020-00355-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42399-020-00355-4

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