Browsing by Author "Kritzinger, Janis"

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    Exploring the barriers and facilitators to health care services and health care information for deaf people in Worcester
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2011-12) Kritzinger, Janis; Swartz, Leslie; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Psychology.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The deaf community face similar access barriers to health care services and information as do other linguistic minority groups. Amongst others, this includes limited access to English communication, misunderstanding of medical terminology, irregular contact with health care professionals of the same language and cultural background and the need to overcome the challenges experienced by using others as interpreters in a health care setting. Barriers to the written and spoken word limit access to health care information as deaf people cannot overhear conversations, have limited access to mass media and present with low literacy rates. The South African Constitution stipulates that every citizen has an equal right to health care services and should not be unfairly discriminated against, on the basis of language. Unfortunately, despite what is written in the Constitution, the reality is that many South Africans are denied equal access or receive compromised access to health care services because of language barriers. The lack of access to interpreters at health care facilities across South Africa inhibits patients from expressing themselves correctly and limits the providers’ professional ability to make a correct diagnosis and provide relevant information. The current study explores the barriers and facilitators to accessing health care services and health care information for people who are deaf in a relatively well-resourced setting. A sample of deaf participants from the National Institute for the Deaf in Worcester were interviewed to gain an understanding of problems experienced with accessing health care services and health care information. Participants reported communication and socio-economic factors as barriers to accessing health care services. The main barrier to accessing health care information was considered to be the inaccessibility of the mass media. Recommendations were made by participants on ways to improve access to health care services and health care information for the deaf population of South Africa. Keywords: Health care acces, Health care information, Deaf, Worcester, Barriers and facilitators to health care services.
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    Exploring the interaction of activity limitations with context, systems, community and personal factors in accessing public health care services : a presentation of South African case studies
    (AOSIS Publishing, 2017-02) Mji, Gubela; Braathen, Stine H.; Vergunst, Richard; Scheffler, Elsje; Kritzinger, Janis; Mannan, Hasheem; Schneider, Marguerite; Swartz, Leslie; Visagie, Surona
    Background: There are many factors that influence access to public health services, such as the context people live in, the existing health services, and personal, cultural and community factors. People with disabilities (activity limitations), through their experience of health services, may offer a particular understanding of the performance of the health services, thus exposing health system limitations more clearly than perhaps any other health service user. Aim: This article explores how activity limitations interact with factors related to context, systems, community and personal factors in accessing public health care services in South Africa. Setting: We present four case studies of people with disabilities from four low-resource diverse contexts in South Africa (rural, semi-rural, farming community and peri-urban) to highlight challenges of access to health services experienced by people with activity limitations in a variety of contexts. Methods: One case study of a person with disabilities was chosen from each study setting to build evidence using an intensive qualitative case study methodology to elucidate individual and household experiences of challenges experienced by people with activity limitations when attempting to access public health services. In-depth interviews were used to collect data, using an interview guide. The analysis was conducted in the form of a thematic analysis using the interview topics as a starting point. Results: First, these four case studies demonstrate that equitable access to health services for people with activity limitations is influenced by a complex interplay of a variety of factors for a single individual in a particular context. Secondly, that while problems with access to public health services are experienced by everyone, people with activity limitations are affected in particular ways making them particularly vulnerable in using public health services. Conclusion: The revitalisation of primary health care and the introduction of national health insurance by the Health Department of South Africa open a window of opportunity for policy makers and policy implementers to revisit and address the areas of access to public health services for people with activity limitations.