Communication experiences of patients and healthcare providers in managing chronic illnesses at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital

Abstract

The Ministry of Health in Kenya projects that deaths from chronic illnesses will increase by 65% in 2030. To efficiently manage chronic diseases, effective communication between patients and healthcare providers is of crucial importance. However, studies have shown that many patients lack knowledge about their conditions and the treatment processes. This study aimed to investigate the experiences of patients and caregivers while communicating with healthcare providers on managing chronic illnesses. The study sought to answer the following questions: How do healthcare providers communicate with patients about managing chronic illnesses? What are the healthcare providers perceptions regarding communication with patients with chronic illnesses? How do caregivers influence communication between healthcare providers and patients on managing chronic illnesses? How do patients and their caregivers perceive the communication approaches used by health providers in the management of their illnesses? The study was undertaken at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital in Kisumu County. It adopted the relativist-interpretivist paradigm and qualitative approach to generate and analyse data. An instrumental case study design was used in the study. Purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used to identify 10 patients and 5 caregivers who were drawn from patient support groups at the hospital. In addition, 10 healthcare providers (2 medical officers, 2 clinical officers, 3 nurses, 1 counselling psychologist, and 2 nutritionists) were sampled. Data was generated through in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. Recorded interviews and focus group discussions were transcribed and analysed using a thematic approach. Study findings indicate that health providers are knowledgeable, and they believe that patients needed to be provided with information. However, the literacy levels of the patients, disease progression, condition of the patient and health providers‘ personality influenced how much information was provided to the patients. English was the main language used by health providers, which often created a language barrier among patients who did not understand the language, and often created opportunities for misinformation where interpreters were used. The hospital lacked trained interpreters; hence caregivers and hospital staff acted as interpreters. This was found to affect patients‘ privacy and disclosure especially where the patient did not want their health information to be accessed by a third party. Patients often felt that the information they received from healthcare workers about their condition was inadequate. The study concludes that patients felt they did not get adequate information that would enable them to effectively manage their conditions hence there is need for patient-centred communication.