Alcohol, Isolation, and Access to Treatment: Family Physician Experiences of Alcohol Consumption and Access to Health Care in Rural British Columbia
Abstract
Objective: The purpose of this project was to study the experiences of physicians who treat persons with alcohol‐attributed diseases in rural areas of British Columbia, Canada. Method: A cross‐sectional survey was distributed to primary health care physicians that had a family practice in a designated rural community using the Rural Coordination Centre of British Columbia's community isolation rating system. Data were collected through a mail and online survey sent to primary health care physicians. Purposeful sampling was used to select participants that had a primary health care practice in a designated rural community. Results: Surveys were returned by 22% of potential participants (N = 67) that had an average of 15.8 years in family practice. The majority of participants (95.4%) reported that alcohol had a negative impact on population health, and physicians expressed particular concern for alcohol consumption in relation to mental health (85.1%) and physical illness (82.1%). Most participants had referred patients out of the community for treatment; however, 76.4% reported difficulty with referrals, including long wait‐lists, limited services, and issues related to transportation and leaving the community for substance use treatment. Conclusion: Rural physicians showed an awareness and concern for alcohol consumption in their community, but they also reported difficulties referring patients for substance use treatment. Additional study is required to understand how to improve the continuity of care provided to persons with alcohol‐related issues in rural British Columbia.
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Difficulties in referring patients for specialized services were not an issue for the majority of GPs from Canada and Sweden.
“however, this was not an issue for the majority of the GPs from Canada and Sweden [70, 112].”
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- Authors
- Slaunwhite, A. K., & Macdonald, S.
- Affiliations
- University of New Brunswick (CA)
- University of Victoria (CA)
- Corresponding author
- Slaunwhite, Amanda K.
- Venue
- The Journal of Rural Health
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2015-05-07
- Volume
- 31
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 335-345
- ISSN
- 0890-765X (ISSN-L)
- 1748-0361
- OpenAlex
- W1555990190
- Cited by
- 15
- References
- 63
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2
- FWCI
- 0.52
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Journal of Rural Health (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Emergency Medical Services › Global Health Workforce Issues
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Keywords
- alcohol consumption, substance use disorder treatment access, general practitioners, rural health care, physician experience, community isolation, continuity of care, mental health, British Columbia
- MeSH terms
- Alcoholism, Attitude of Health Personnel, British Columbia, Cross-Sectional Studies, Family Practice, Health Services Accessibility, Humans, Loneliness, Surveys and Questionnaires, Rural Population, Rural Health Services
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