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The Post-Amputation Rehabilitation Experience of People Living in Rural Settings

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 August 2015

Amanda Young ,
Gregory Murphy ,
Sandra Kippen  and
Peter Foreman
Amanda Young
Affiliation:
Monash University, Australia
Gregory Murphy*
Affiliation:
La Trobe University, Australia
Sandra Kippen
Affiliation:
La Trobe University, Australia
Peter Foreman
Affiliation:
La Trobe University, Australia
*
School of Public Health La Trobe University, Bundoora VIC 3083, Australia. Email: g.murphy@latrobe.edu.au
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Abstract

This paper reports the results from a qualitative study aimed at identifying the factors influencing the rehabilitation experience of people living with an amputation in a rural setting. Following the conduct of an initial focus group, 24 rural-based individuals responded to an invitation to participate in the study's in-depth interviews. Fourteen of those interviewed lived in a ‘regional’ setting (the regional group) and the other ten lived in more remote locations (the ‘distant’ group). Consistent with this population's demography, the sample was comprised mainly of older people (mean age of 66.8 years) who had suffered their amputation as a result of vascular disease. While the groups differed with respect to two aspects of their rehabilitation experience (with the distant group reporting more problems with accommodation and access to health services), many common themes emerged from the interviews, including an overall positive acceptance of the surgical intervention, the call for increased post-operative counselling services, and an endorsement of the usefulness of peer-support (and more generally of social support) services. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for service delivery and endorsement is made of the suggestion that rural health planning be more community-focussed.

Type
Articles
Information
The Australian Journal of Rehabilitation Counselling , Volume 7 , Issue 1 , 2001 , pp. 23 - 37
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2001

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