Short report: engagement with health services during the COVID-19 outbreak: the case of Israeli people with diabetes

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Although continuing to utilize health services remains a key determinant of health, the association between the COVID-19 pandemic and engagement with health services among people with diabetes (PWD) remains unknown. This cross-sectional online survey examined factors associated with PWD’s engagement with health services among 205 Israeli PWD during the subsiding of the first COVID-19 wave in Israel. Participants completed measures of perceived diabetes status, perceived risk, emotional reactions toward COVID-19, sense of mastery, engagement with health services (fear of contracting the virus in health services, canceling a medical appointment), and socio-demographic questionnaires. Most participants were women, their mean age was 40.18 years, and mean years since diagnosis was 15.70. Participants were recruited mainly via diabetes internet forums. Logistic and multiple hierarchical regressions were calculated. The odds of canceling appointment were higher for younger participants and for participants experiencing greater negative emotional reactions. Higher fear of contracting the virus in health services was related to higher perceived risk and experiencing greater negative emotional reactions. Findings suggest that in order to encourage PWD to utilize health services during a virus outbreak, clinical interventions should address PWD’s perceived risk of contracting the virus and their emotional reactions toward COVID-19.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)178-185
Number of pages8
JournalPsychology, Health and Medicine
Volume27
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2022

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.

Keywords

  • COVID-19
  • Diabetes
  • emotional reactions
  • health system
  • perceived risk
  • sense of mastery

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Short report: engagement with health services during the COVID-19 outbreak: the case of Israeli people with diabetes'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this