ArticlePrimary health care research & development2025
The healthcare experiences of rural-living Canadians with and without a primary care provider: a qualitative analysis of open-ended cross-sectional survey responses.
Article in Primary health care research & development, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
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Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed.
- Racial and Social Disparities in Primary Healthcare Access and Wait Times in Canada: A Cross-Sectional Study.Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities · 2026Article
- Differences in Preventive Care Uptake in Attached and Unattached Rural-Living Residents.Health promotion practice · 2026Article
- Trends and inequities in primary and emergency care use among older adults in British Columbia: an analysis across age, sex, income, and rurality (2018-2023).International journal for equity in health · 2026Article
- Article
- Perspectives of Adolescents and Young Adults, Caregivers, and Health Care Providers on Regional Cancer Care: Qualitative Study.JMIR cancer · 2026Article
- Article
- Creating an Inclusive Definition for High Users of Inpatient Hospital Systems That Considers Different Levels of Rurality.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
aimThis study aimed to explore healthcare experiences of rural-living patients both with (attached) and without (unattached) a local primary care provider.
backgroundPrimary care providers serve a gatekeeping role in the Canadian healthcare system as the first contact for receiving many health services. With the shortage of primary care providers, especially in rural areas, there is a need to explore attached and unattached patient experiences when accessing healthcare.
methodsA cross-sectional survey of rural patients both with (attached) and without (unattached) a primary care provider was conducted July-September 2022. An open-ended question gathered participants' thoughts and experiences with provider shortages.
findingsOverall, 523 (Mean age = 51 years, 75% female) rural British Columbia community members (306 attached; 217 unattached) completed the survey. Despite similar overall health, unattached patients received care less frequently overall compared to attached patients, including less frequent non-urgent and preventive care. The vast majority of attached patients sought care from a regular provider whereas unattached patients were more likely to use walk-in, emergency department, and urgent care and 29% did not seek care at all. Overall, 460 (88.0%) provided a response to the open-ended doctor shortage question. Similar themes were found among both attached and unattached participants and included: i) the ubiquity of the doctor shortage, ii) the precariousness or fluidity of attachment status, and iii) solutions and recommendations. Greater attention is needed on the negative and cyclical impacts provider shortages have for both attached and unattached patients alike.
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Registered trials
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