‘It still leaves me sixty dollars out of pocket’: experiences of diabetes medical care among low-income earners in Perth

Diabetes prevalence is increasing in Australia, and there are stark inequities in prevalence and clinical outcomes experienced by Indigenous people and low socioeconomic groups compared with non-Indigenous and socioeconomically advantaged groups. This paper explores the impact of Indigenous status a...

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Main Authors: Cuesta-Briand, Beatriz, Saggers, Sherry, McManus, Alexandra
Format: Journal Article
Published: C S I R O Publishing 2014
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/21128
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author Cuesta-Briand, Beatriz
Saggers, Sherry
McManus, Alexandra
author_facet Cuesta-Briand, Beatriz
Saggers, Sherry
McManus, Alexandra
author_sort Cuesta-Briand, Beatriz
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Diabetes prevalence is increasing in Australia, and there are stark inequities in prevalence and clinical outcomes experienced by Indigenous people and low socioeconomic groups compared with non-Indigenous and socioeconomically advantaged groups. This paper explores the impact of Indigenous status and socioeconomic disadvantage on the experience of diabetes care in the primary health setting. Data were collected through focus groups and interviews. The sample, comprising 38 participants (Indigenous and non-Indigenous), was recruited from disadvantaged areas in Perth, Australia. Data analysis was mainly deductive and based on a conceptual framework for the relationship between socioeconomic position and diabetes health outcomes. Most participants reported accessing general practitioners regularly; however, evidence of access to dietitians and podiatrists was very limited. Perceived need, cost, lack of information on available services and previous negative experiences influenced health care-seeking behaviour. Complexity and lack of coordination characterised the model of care reported by most participants. In contrast, Indigenous participants accessing an Aboriginal community-controlled health organisation reported a more accessible and coordinated experience of care. Our analysis suggests that Indigenous and socioeconomically disadvantaged people tailor their health care-seeking behaviour to the limitations imposed by their income and disadvantaged circumstances. To reduce inequities in care experiences, diabetes services in primary care need to be accessible and responsive to the needs of such groups in the community.
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institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T07:37:52Z
publishDate 2014
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-211282017-09-13T13:52:23Z ‘It still leaves me sixty dollars out of pocket’: experiences of diabetes medical care among low-income earners in Perth Cuesta-Briand, Beatriz Saggers, Sherry McManus, Alexandra barriers model of care health care-seeking behaviour access health inequalities disadvantage Diabetes prevalence is increasing in Australia, and there are stark inequities in prevalence and clinical outcomes experienced by Indigenous people and low socioeconomic groups compared with non-Indigenous and socioeconomically advantaged groups. This paper explores the impact of Indigenous status and socioeconomic disadvantage on the experience of diabetes care in the primary health setting. Data were collected through focus groups and interviews. The sample, comprising 38 participants (Indigenous and non-Indigenous), was recruited from disadvantaged areas in Perth, Australia. Data analysis was mainly deductive and based on a conceptual framework for the relationship between socioeconomic position and diabetes health outcomes. Most participants reported accessing general practitioners regularly; however, evidence of access to dietitians and podiatrists was very limited. Perceived need, cost, lack of information on available services and previous negative experiences influenced health care-seeking behaviour. Complexity and lack of coordination characterised the model of care reported by most participants. In contrast, Indigenous participants accessing an Aboriginal community-controlled health organisation reported a more accessible and coordinated experience of care. Our analysis suggests that Indigenous and socioeconomically disadvantaged people tailor their health care-seeking behaviour to the limitations imposed by their income and disadvantaged circumstances. To reduce inequities in care experiences, diabetes services in primary care need to be accessible and responsive to the needs of such groups in the community. 2014 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/21128 10.1071/PY12096 C S I R O Publishing restricted
spellingShingle barriers
model of care
health care-seeking behaviour
access
health inequalities
disadvantage
Cuesta-Briand, Beatriz
Saggers, Sherry
McManus, Alexandra
‘It still leaves me sixty dollars out of pocket’: experiences of diabetes medical care among low-income earners in Perth
title ‘It still leaves me sixty dollars out of pocket’: experiences of diabetes medical care among low-income earners in Perth
title_full ‘It still leaves me sixty dollars out of pocket’: experiences of diabetes medical care among low-income earners in Perth
title_fullStr ‘It still leaves me sixty dollars out of pocket’: experiences of diabetes medical care among low-income earners in Perth
title_full_unstemmed ‘It still leaves me sixty dollars out of pocket’: experiences of diabetes medical care among low-income earners in Perth
title_short ‘It still leaves me sixty dollars out of pocket’: experiences of diabetes medical care among low-income earners in Perth
title_sort ‘it still leaves me sixty dollars out of pocket’: experiences of diabetes medical care among low-income earners in perth
topic barriers
model of care
health care-seeking behaviour
access
health inequalities
disadvantage
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/21128