Highlights
- •In this cohort, people living with MS utilised healthcare services significantly more than those not living with MS.
- •People living with MS were more likely to report being satisfied with the sufficiency, quality, and accessibility of their healthcare compared to people not living with MS.
- •Among both people living with and not living with MS, higher health literacy and healthcare utilization were associated with satisfaction with healthcare.
Abstract
Background
Healthcare utilization and satisfaction are important for health outcomes among people
living with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). However, there is little current evidence around
healthcare utilization among PwMS, and less comparing PwMS to those not living with
MS.
Objective
To evaluate healthcare utilization and satisfaction among Understanding MS online
course enrolees and to identify factors associated with healthcare satisfaction.
Method
In this international cross-sectional study, we evaluated participant characteristics
(including health literacy and quality of life), healthcare utilization (number of
visits, number of provider types), and satisfaction with healthcare (perceived healthcare
sufficiency, quality, accessibility) among enrolees in the Understanding MS online
course (N = 1068). We evaluated study outcomes using summary statistics. We compared participant
characteristics and study outcomes between PwMS and those not living with MS using
chi square and t-tests.
Results
In this study cohort, PwMS were older, less likely to have a university degree, had
lower health literacy, and lower quality of life. PwMS had significantly more healthcare
visits in the previous year and visited a more diverse range of provider types than
those not living with MS. PwMS were also more likely to report being satisfied with
the healthcare they received. Among both PwMS and those not living with MS, higher
health literacy and higher healthcare utilization were significantly associated with
satisfaction with healthcare sufficiency, quality, and accessibility.
Conclusion
PwMS were more likely to be satisfied with the healthcare they received compared to
those not living with MS. This may be due in part to the differences in health literacy
and healthcare utilization between the two groups. We recommend that these relationships
be rigorously assessed in future research.
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: April 23, 2023
Accepted:
April 22,
2023
Received in revised form:
April 18,
2023
Received:
December 21,
2022
Identification
Copyright
© 2023 Published by Elsevier B.V.
