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Final Thesis.pdf (4.77 MB)
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Evaluating Community Dependence on Short-Term International Medical Clinics: A Cross-Sectional Study in Masatepe, Nicaragua
Author Info
Ambrose, Josh D
Permalink:
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1463133502
Abstract Details
Year and Degree
2016, BS, Kent State University, College of Public Health.
Abstract
Participation in short-term medical initiatives in low- and middle-income countries is increasing among health professionals, missionaries, and trainees from high-income countries. Various authors have expressed concern that these short-term programs have the potential to harm the recipient communities; however, little quantitative research has been conducted that examines the impact of these programs on the recipients of care. In December 2014, we conducted a survey-based, cross-sectional study with a sample of 59 adults receiving care from a Short-Term International Medical Clinic (STIMC) in Masatepe, Nicaragua. Our study observed a STIMC sponsored by Heartland Community Church, an international partner with the Nuevos Horizontes Mission in Masatepe. Oral consent was obtained from all participants. Four major constructs were evaluated in order to answer the research question, “Do short-term international medical clinics perpetuate a cycle of dependence on foreign health care within the local community?” These four constructs – access, trust, quality, and perceived importance of health care – were used to assess community dependence on STIMCs as a primary source of health care in Masatepe, Nicaragua. A community considered dependent on STIMCs as a source of primary health care would exhibit the potential to forego local health care services in favor of receiving care from a temporary and often unreliable STIMC. Our data provides preliminary findings that support conclusions of prior research and establish a basis of knowledge conducive for future study. We observed patients with minimal access to health care services, which reinforces the need to improve access to primary medical care, especially in rural areas. Seventy-eight percent of survey respondents also noted high cost as a prohibiting factor to receiving regular health care services. In addition, our findings revealed that survey respondents exemplified varying degrees of dependence on STIMCs as a primary source of health care services. Forty-seven percent of survey respondents qualified as low health care utilizers, indicating the potential to forego local health care in the event that a STIMC was not available to tend to health care needs. This statistic indicates that the reduction of economic barriers to health care may reduce community dependence on STIMCs as a primary source of health care. This observational study outlines strategies for identifying and targeting high-risk, low health care utilizing subpopulations within Masatepe for future STIMCs.
Committee
Abbey Eng, Ph.D (Advisor)
Madhav Bhatta, Ph.D (Committee Member)
Natasha Levinson, Ph.D (Committee Member)
Christopher Woolverton, Ph.D (Committee Member)
Pages
54 p.
Subject Headings
Behavioral Sciences
;
Biostatistics
;
Health Care
;
Medical Ethics
;
Organizational Behavior
;
Public Health
Keywords
humanitarian aid
;
foreign aid
;
missions trips
;
missionaries
;
medical clinics
;
Nicaragua
;
medical aid
;
humanitarian
;
volunteer
;
community dependence
;
health care
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Refworks
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Citations
Ambrose, J. D. (2016).
Evaluating Community Dependence on Short-Term International Medical Clinics: A Cross-Sectional Study in Masatepe, Nicaragua
[Undergraduate thesis, Kent State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1463133502
APA Style (7th edition)
Ambrose, Josh.
Evaluating Community Dependence on Short-Term International Medical Clinics: A Cross-Sectional Study in Masatepe, Nicaragua.
2016. Kent State University, Undergraduate thesis.
OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center
, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1463133502.
MLA Style (8th edition)
Ambrose, Josh. "Evaluating Community Dependence on Short-Term International Medical Clinics: A Cross-Sectional Study in Masatepe, Nicaragua." Undergraduate thesis, Kent State University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ksuhonors1463133502
Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)
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Document number:
ksuhonors1463133502
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Copyright Info
© 2016, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Kent State University Honors College and OhioLINK.