Table 5 Summary of the reported barriers to early presentation among study participants
Category | Barrier | Total (n = 615) n (%) | Gaza Strip (n = 235) n (%) | WBJ (n = 380) n (%) | p-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Emotional | Disliking the visit to healthcare facilities | 368 (59.8) | 136 (57.9) | 232 (61.1) | 0.45 |
Feeling worried about what a doctor might find | 313 (50.9) | 118 (50.2) | 195 (51.3) | 0.80 | |
God is the ultimate healer so there in no need to go to the doctor | 291 (47.3) | 95 (40.4) | 196 (51.6) | 0.008 | |
Would prefer not to know the reason of the symptom | 273 (44.4) | 90 (38.3) | 183 (48.2) | 0.019 | |
Feeling scared | 268 (43.6) | 108 (46.0) | 160 (42.1) | 0.36 | |
Would not trust the doctor | 224 (36.4) | 103 (43.8) | 121 (31.8) | 0.003 | |
Would not feel comfortable to be examined by a doctor of a different gender from the participant’s | 164 (26.7) | 75 (31.9) | 89 (23.4) | 0.024 | |
Embarrassment | 110 (17.9) | 46 (19.6) | 64 (16.8) | 0.39 | |
Would not feel confident talking about symptom with the doctor | 79 (12.9) | 33 (14.0) | 46 (12.1) | 0.54 | |
Service | The thought that there is a small number of qualified doctors in the Palestinian Ministry of Health facilities | 263 (42.8) | 110 (46.8) | 153 (40.3) | 0.11 |
Difficulty making an appointment with the doctor | 191 (31.1) | 70 (29.8) | 121 (31.8) | 0.65 | |
Feeling worried about wasting doctor’s time | 150 (24.4) | 58 (24.7) | 92 (24.2) | 0.92 | |
Difficulty talking to doctor | 128 (20.8) | 55 (23.4) | 73 (19.2) | 0.22 | |
Practical | Would think that symptom is not something important to see the doctor for | 353 (57.4) | 117 (49.8) | 236 (62.1) | 0.003 |
Would try some herbs first | 348 (56.6) | 137 (58.3) | 211 (55.5) | 0.50 | |
Has other things to do | 282 (45.9) | 95 (40.4) | 187 (49.2) | 0.037 | |
Too busy to go to the doctor | 280 (45.5) | 103 (43.8) | 177 (46.6) | 0.56 | |
Financial hardship that will not allow seeing the doctor | 227 (36.9) | 121 (51.5) | 106 (27.9) |  < 0.001 | |
Difficulty arranging transports to the doctor | 150 (24.4) | 86 (36.6) | 64 (16.8) |  < 0.001 | |
Family or partner would refuse the participant being examined by a doctor of a different gender | 52 (8.5) | 24 (10.2) | 28 (7.4) | 0.23 | |
Family or partner would refuse the visit to the doctor | 44 (7.2) | 23 (9.8) | 21 (5.5) | 0.054 |