Socioeconomic status and barriers for contacting the general practitioner when bothered by erectile dysfunction: a population-based cross-sectional study
Abstract Background Erectile dysfunction (ED) is common and impacts psychosocial wellbeing negatively. Many do not seek medical attention and several barriers for healthcare seeking with ED exist. Little is known about the association between socioeconomic characteristics of the patient and barriers...
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doaj-fb522d8193784802ac54b20344ea2e5a2020-11-25T01:59:32ZengBMCBMC Family Practice1471-22962020-08-012111910.1186/s12875-020-01238-2Socioeconomic status and barriers for contacting the general practitioner when bothered by erectile dysfunction: a population-based cross-sectional studySanne Rasmussen0Kirubakaran Balasubramaniam1Dorte Ejg Jarbøl2Jens Søndergaard3Peter Fentz Haastrup4Research Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern DenmarkResearch Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern DenmarkResearch Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern DenmarkResearch Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern DenmarkResearch Unit of General Practice, Department of Public Health, University of Southern DenmarkAbstract Background Erectile dysfunction (ED) is common and impacts psychosocial wellbeing negatively. Many do not seek medical attention and several barriers for healthcare seeking with ED exist. Little is known about the association between socioeconomic characteristics of the patient and barriers for healthcare-seeking for men bothered by ED. The objectives of the study were 1) to estimate the proportion of men bothered by ED, who do not contact the GP, 2) to analyse the frequencies of selected barriers for healthcare seeking and 3) to analyse associations between socioeconomic factors and barriers for contacting the GP. Methods Data derive from a nationwide survey of symptom experiences among 100,000 randomly selected individuals aged 20 years and above. The questionnaire comprises, among other, questions about ED. This study focuses on men who reported bothersome ED and further reported, that they did not contact a GP regarding the symptom. Questions addressing barriers regarding GP contact included embarrassment, worrying about wasting the doctor’s time, being too busy, and worrying about what the doctor might find. Information about socioeconomic characteristics was obtained from Statistics Denmark. Results A total of 4072 men (18.3%) reported that they had experienced ED within the past four weeks. Of those, 2888 (70.9%) were categorized as having bothersome ED. In the group of men with bothersome ED 1802 (62.4%) did not contact the GP and 60.5% reported barriers for GP-contact. Of the reported barriers, the most frequent was ‘being too embarrassed’ (29.7%). In general, respondents in the older age groups were less likely to report embarrassment, business and worrying what the doctor might find. Respondents with highest attained educational level were less likely to report embarrassment and worrying. Conclusion Nearly two third of the respondents with bothersome ED had not contacted their GP. More than half of those reported barriers towards GP contact with embarrassment as the most frequent barrier. In general, respondents in the older age groups and with high educational level were less likely to report barriers.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12875-020-01238-2Erectile dysfunctionHealthcare seekingSocioeconomic characteristicsBarriers |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Sanne Rasmussen Kirubakaran Balasubramaniam Dorte Ejg Jarbøl Jens Søndergaard Peter Fentz Haastrup |
spellingShingle |
Sanne Rasmussen Kirubakaran Balasubramaniam Dorte Ejg Jarbøl Jens Søndergaard Peter Fentz Haastrup Socioeconomic status and barriers for contacting the general practitioner when bothered by erectile dysfunction: a population-based cross-sectional study BMC Family Practice Erectile dysfunction Healthcare seeking Socioeconomic characteristics Barriers |
author_facet |
Sanne Rasmussen Kirubakaran Balasubramaniam Dorte Ejg Jarbøl Jens Søndergaard Peter Fentz Haastrup |
author_sort |
Sanne Rasmussen |
title |
Socioeconomic status and barriers for contacting the general practitioner when bothered by erectile dysfunction: a population-based cross-sectional study |
title_short |
Socioeconomic status and barriers for contacting the general practitioner when bothered by erectile dysfunction: a population-based cross-sectional study |
title_full |
Socioeconomic status and barriers for contacting the general practitioner when bothered by erectile dysfunction: a population-based cross-sectional study |
title_fullStr |
Socioeconomic status and barriers for contacting the general practitioner when bothered by erectile dysfunction: a population-based cross-sectional study |
title_full_unstemmed |
Socioeconomic status and barriers for contacting the general practitioner when bothered by erectile dysfunction: a population-based cross-sectional study |
title_sort |
socioeconomic status and barriers for contacting the general practitioner when bothered by erectile dysfunction: a population-based cross-sectional study |
publisher |
BMC |
series |
BMC Family Practice |
issn |
1471-2296 |
publishDate |
2020-08-01 |
description |
Abstract Background Erectile dysfunction (ED) is common and impacts psychosocial wellbeing negatively. Many do not seek medical attention and several barriers for healthcare seeking with ED exist. Little is known about the association between socioeconomic characteristics of the patient and barriers for healthcare-seeking for men bothered by ED. The objectives of the study were 1) to estimate the proportion of men bothered by ED, who do not contact the GP, 2) to analyse the frequencies of selected barriers for healthcare seeking and 3) to analyse associations between socioeconomic factors and barriers for contacting the GP. Methods Data derive from a nationwide survey of symptom experiences among 100,000 randomly selected individuals aged 20 years and above. The questionnaire comprises, among other, questions about ED. This study focuses on men who reported bothersome ED and further reported, that they did not contact a GP regarding the symptom. Questions addressing barriers regarding GP contact included embarrassment, worrying about wasting the doctor’s time, being too busy, and worrying about what the doctor might find. Information about socioeconomic characteristics was obtained from Statistics Denmark. Results A total of 4072 men (18.3%) reported that they had experienced ED within the past four weeks. Of those, 2888 (70.9%) were categorized as having bothersome ED. In the group of men with bothersome ED 1802 (62.4%) did not contact the GP and 60.5% reported barriers for GP-contact. Of the reported barriers, the most frequent was ‘being too embarrassed’ (29.7%). In general, respondents in the older age groups were less likely to report embarrassment, business and worrying what the doctor might find. Respondents with highest attained educational level were less likely to report embarrassment and worrying. Conclusion Nearly two third of the respondents with bothersome ED had not contacted their GP. More than half of those reported barriers towards GP contact with embarrassment as the most frequent barrier. In general, respondents in the older age groups and with high educational level were less likely to report barriers. |
topic |
Erectile dysfunction Healthcare seeking Socioeconomic characteristics Barriers |
url |
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12875-020-01238-2 |
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AT sannerasmussen socioeconomicstatusandbarriersforcontactingthegeneralpractitionerwhenbotheredbyerectiledysfunctionapopulationbasedcrosssectionalstudy AT kirubakaranbalasubramaniam socioeconomicstatusandbarriersforcontactingthegeneralpractitionerwhenbotheredbyerectiledysfunctionapopulationbasedcrosssectionalstudy AT dorteejgjarbøl socioeconomicstatusandbarriersforcontactingthegeneralpractitionerwhenbotheredbyerectiledysfunctionapopulationbasedcrosssectionalstudy AT jenssøndergaard socioeconomicstatusandbarriersforcontactingthegeneralpractitionerwhenbotheredbyerectiledysfunctionapopulationbasedcrosssectionalstudy AT peterfentzhaastrup socioeconomicstatusandbarriersforcontactingthegeneralpractitionerwhenbotheredbyerectiledysfunctionapopulationbasedcrosssectionalstudy |
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