Experience of financial toxicity and coping strategies in young and middle-aged patients with stroke: a qualitative study

作者：Ling Xu, Qiong Dong, Aiping Jin, Sining Zeng, Kai Wang, Xiaopei Yang, Xiaoping Zhu · 发表于：BMC Health Services Research · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1186/s12913-023-10457-z · 被引用次数：20 · 研究领域：Economic and Financial Impacts of Cancer、Health Systems, Economic Evaluations, Quality of Life、Healthcare Policy and Management

BACKGROUND: While financial toxicity (FT) is prevalent in patients with cancer, young and middle-aged patients with stroke are also affected by FT, which can exacerbate their physical and psychological challenges. Understanding the patient's experience and response measures can further understand the impact of FT on patients with stroke, to help alleviate FT. However, little is known concerning the experience of patients with stroke with FT or their coping strategies. Therefore, this study aimed to describe the experiences of FT in young and middle-aged patients with stroke and their coping strategies. METHODS: A phenomenological method was utilized. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 young and middle-aged stroke patients (aged 18-59) between October 2022 and March 2023. The participants were recruited from a tertiary hospital in Shanghai, China. The research team used NVivo 12.0 software. Giorgi's phenomenological analysis method was used to analyse the interview data. RESULTS: The interview results were divided into two categories in terms of patients' experiences of FT and their coping strategies. Nine subthemes were constructed. The experience category included four subthemes: (1) taking on multifaceted economic pressure, (2) dual choice of treatment, (3) decline in material living standards, and (4) suffering from negative emotions such as anxiety and depression. The coping strategy category included five subthemes: (1) reducing expenses, (2) improving liv...