Giving patients a voice for healthcare reform in Austria: the qualitative voice-study

Inclusion of patients in healthcare service and system planning is an increasingly important tool to improve healthcare systems worldwide. In 2012, a focused healthcare reform was initiated in Austria to strengthen the primary care sector which is still underway in 2023.

The aim of this study was to assess the perceptions, desires, and needs of patients in terms of primary care as a necessary building block of the Austrian healthcare reform.

This study was designed as an exploratory qualitative study using semi-structured interviews between the years 2013 and 2018. Interviews with patients focused on positive and negative experiences with regard to general practice (GP) consultations and perceptions of the primary care system in general, as well as desires for improvement. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyse the material using the software atlas.ti.

Altogether, 41 interviews were conducted with seven categories identified. These categories include organization and time management around consultation, access, and availability including opening hours, human and professional aspects of consultation, infrastructure and hygiene of the waiting room, healthcare system factors, as well as non-clinical/administrative staff.

Appreciating and responding to patients' perceptions and needs, healthcare reform in Austria should include improvements regarding consultation/waiting time, coordination, and navigation in Primary Care. Successful healthcare reform has to include the patient voice.