Veterinarian's dilemma: a study of how Danish small animal practitioners handle financially limited clients.
Vet Rec
; 179(23): 596, 2016 Dec 10.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-27811050
ABSTRACT
This study examined the extent to which Danish veterinary practices encounter financially limited clients and how different factors relating to the animal, the client and the veterinarian affect decisions to provide treatment for these clients. 300 small animal practices were invited to participate in an online survey. 195 participated, giving a response rate of 65 per cent. The results show that Danish small animal veterinary practices encounter clients with limited finances regularly 33.8 per cent of them 3-4 times, 24.6 per cent 5-10 times and 19.5 per cent 1-2 times a month. Only around 9 per cent reported having a written practice policy on handling financially limited clients. Factors affecting decisions to treat include the severity and type of the animal's condition, the medical care needed and the client's expressed emotions. The propensity to treat is significantly higher in female veterinarians and in situations involving unborn animals. The overall conclusion is that small animal veterinary practices often provide treatment to clients who are not able to pay-far beyond what is legally required. This can be considered a major economic and psychological challenge for the practising veterinarians.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Contexto em Saúde:
1_ASSA2030
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Relações Profissional-Paciente
/
Medicina Veterinária
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Cuidados de Saúde não Remunerados
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Médicos Veterinários
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Conflito Psicológico
/
Tomada de Decisões
Tipo de estudo:
Health_economic_evaluation
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Prognostic_studies
/
Qualitative_research
Limite:
Animals
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Female
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Humans
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Male
/
Pregnancy
País/Região como assunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Vet Rec
Ano de publicação:
2016
Tipo de documento:
Article