THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF PATIENTS IN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE HOSPITALS: A

PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY

A Research Paper Presented to the

Faculty of the Senior High School Department

St. Paul’s School of Ormoc Foundation Inc.

Ormoc City

In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements in

PRACTICAL RESEARCH 1

By:

Jericho Clyde Y. Nasayao

Frances Gail M. Pedoy

Jairus Iosef P. Mascariñas

Paul RJ M. Dela Cerna

 Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

Rationale

As indicated by Kornfeld (1972), most people regard hospitalization with considerable

apprehension. Most people view the hospital as a more efficient place in which to study and treat

patients; however, for the patient, the act of hospitalization implies the presence of illness too

serious to be treated in a doctor’s office. This fact alone can be terrifying. It means the patient

must abandon his role in society and face the reality of his own mortality. Man does not usually

live with this anxiety in the forefront of his consciousness. It is hard to do otherwise in the

hospital where one is surrounded by serious illness and death 24 hours a day. Certainly, each

patient deals with this situation in his own way but each one must come to grips with it.

Hippocrates once said it is not enough for us to do what we can do; the patient and the

environment, and external conditions have to contribute to achieve the cure. Hence, a positive

environment is essential for the patients. According to IGI Global (2018), hospital environment

is the term used for work environment of employees in healthcare. The sum of the elements,

factors and conditions in the place of employment involves the physical geographical location as

well as the immediate surroundings of the workplace. A positive hospital environment makes

employees feel good about coming to work, and provides the motivation to sustain them

throughout the day.

However, we all know that "modern medicine" is now able to perform "miracles," but

that big building with its special sights, sounds, and smells remains for most people a very

frightening place. Therefore, to consider the impact of the hospital environment on patients is not

mere compassion, but a medical necessity. (Kornfeld, 1972)

Government-operated public hospitals are to provide accessible, cost effective specialist services

that are safe and respond to individual needs, with efficient health-care delivery regardless of

geographic location. Public hospitals are usually large buildings that have significant impact on

the environment and the economy of the surrounding community. The physical surroundings in

hospitals constitute health problems in public health delivery (Dilani, 1999).

The large and complex environment of a typical hospital further contributes to the stressful

situation. While it is true that good patient care comes from dedicated individuals, it is equally

true that the physical structures and hospital environment must be such that the safety and well-

being of patients are protected. The performance of hospital buildings and their components

depends to a large extent on continuous and planned periodical maintenance (Shohet, 2003).

Government-owned hospitals are confronted with unique challenges that threaten their existence.

Through an examination of the history, characteristics, and structure of public hospitals, it is

found that such institutions by their nature lack the capacity to compete in a market-driven

economy (Stolzenberg, 2002).

On the other hand, private hospitals as stated by Andaleeb (2000) are not subsidized and depend

on income from clients, they will be more inclined than public hospitals to provide quality

services and to meet patients’ needs better. By doing so, they will not only be able to build

satisfied and loyal clients who will revisit the same facility for future needs; the clients will also

serve as a source of referrals to recommend the private establishments to friends and family,

thereby sustaining the long-term viability of private hospitals.

Hence, this study aims to identify the experiences of patients and how the hospital environments

of both public and private affect each patient. Through gathering all the information and different
opinions of each patient, the researchers would know what the patients think of the said hospital.

It will describe how the hospital environment affects the patient. Furthermore, this study will

hopefully contribute to the information needed for hospitals in order for them to improve their

environment.
 THE PROBLEM

Statement of the problem

This study aims to explore the lived experience of the admitted patients here in Ormoc City. This

study will be conducted both in public and private hospitals in Ormoc City.

Specifically, the study aims to answer the following specific questions.

1. What are the insights of the patients during their admission in the hospital?

2. What are the challenges that the patients have encountered during their

admission?

3. How was the treatment of the hospital staffs towards the patients?

4. What were the realizations of the patients towards their admission in the hospital?

Significance of the study

The study will be focusing on the lived experiences of patients of both public and private

hospitals. The following will benefit from the outcome of this study.

Scope and Delimitations

This study will describe the lived experiences of the patients of public and private

hospitals. The study will focus on the experiences, realizations, and the challenges each patient

had encountered in their stay in the hospital

Definition of Terms

To avoid misconception, important terms in the study are conceptually and operationally defined.

Challenges - refers to a stimulating task or problem faced by an individual (Merriam-

Webster Dictionary, 2018). For this study, the challenges that will be studied are the problems

and struggles faced by the patients during their admission

Experience - refers direct observation of or participation in events as a basis of

knowledge by an individual (merriam-webster.com). In this study we like to know and explore

the experiences of the patients during their admission.

Insights - is the power or act of seeing into a situation by an individual (merriam-

webster.com). The insights of the patients will greatly benefit this study.

Public Hospital - .A health care institution owned by a federal, state, or local

government; PHs have had a significant role in caring for the sick in the US, but are regarded by

some as anachronisms in an increasingly complex and costly health care environment with ↑

operating costs, economic recession, and governmental budgetary restraints (Medical Dictionary,

2018). The study would like to know the experiences of the patients in Public hospitals.

Private Hospital - A hospital similar to a group hospital except that it is controlled by a

single practitioner or by the practitioner and the associates in his or her office. A hospital

operated for profit (Medical Dictionary, 2018).The study would like to know the experiences of

the patients in Private hospitals.

 Phenomenology - refers to an approach to qualitative research that focuses on the

commonality of a lived experience within a particular group. The fundamental goal of the

approach is to arrive at a description of the nature of the particular phenomenon (Creswell,2013).

 Chapter II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter will tackle the various existing literature and studies that have been

conducted that are similar to this study. These pieces of literature may include articles, abstracts,

reviews, dissertations, and electronic media. Related pieces of literature are significant since they

provide a valid and important way of identifying existing patterns and gaps in social research,

They prevent the researchers from accidentally duplication another person’s research (Rozas,

2010)

According to Kornfeld (1997), a patient's maladaptation to the hospital environment can

produce important clinical changes. It is reasonable to suspect that such psychophysiological

responses can influence the course of illness. However, the environment can produce effects

which are more obviously a threat to a patient's physical wellbeing. Therefore, to consider the

impact of the hospital environment on patients is not mere compassion, but a medical necessity.

According to Professor Bryan Lawson, Dr. Michael Phiri, John Wells-Thorpe (2003), this

may well make them even more susceptible to the environment and more sensitive to it. A patient

in hospital may get the personal attention of a doctor for only a few minutes in a day and slightly

longer periods of personal care from nurses and therapists. However, they lay in bed, sit, get

pushed or walk around in their environment for many hours. It is reasonable therefore to assume

that this environment may be a contributory factor to their sense of well-being and actual

recovery.

According to the study of Anna (2017), it has been found that patients’ stress levels can

be kept low if they feel a strong sense of place in the hospital, and are easily able to navigate
their way around in it. With the introduction of complex buildings and new systems, many

hospitals try to superimpose a signage system to direct patients. However, with the levels of

complexity involved due to the large scale, many new patients still encounter spatial

disorientation, which causes their hospital visit to become an unfavorable one.

Special Hospital Areas

According to Kornfeld (1997), as medicine becomes specialized, there is a need for

separate hospital units in which highly trained staff and special equipment can be concentrated to

allow for efficient care.

Isolation Units

According to Kornfeld (1997), sensory deprivation effects has also provided some insight

into the occasional acute psychiatric problems which occur in isolation rooms for patients with

infectious disease or where reverse precautions are needed. Here, the patients are in individual

rooms visited only by gowned and masked staff and family. The need for the mask and gown

undoubtedly reduces the number of visits.

Intensive Care Units

According to McKegney (1966), it has referred to an "intensive care syndrome" and

called it a new disease of medical progress. These are indeed psychiatric problems which appear

to be a reaction to the unique environment of the ICU itself and these phenomena will be

reviewed. However, intensive care is applied in a variety of medical and surgical settings and the

nature and extent of the psychiatric problems can vary.

Operating Room

According to Kornfeld (1997), the operating room had been considered one area where a

patient's psychological responses could be temporarily ignored. Recent reports have suggested

that this may be a false assumption. The work of Cheek and Levinson indicates that patients

may perceive remarks made while they were apparently anesthetized.

Recovery Room

According to Kornfeld (1997), typically, a recovery room is a large, open area in which a

group of patients lie about at various levels of consciousness; an area in which one may be lying

for 3 hours waiting for spinal anaesthesia to wear off, while across the room a patient who has

suddenly begun to bleed is being frantically worked upon by a group of physicians and nurses.

Until very recently little attention has been paid to the psychological responses of patients

in the surgical recovery room. However, a paper by (Winkelstein, C., Blacher R., Meyer B.,

1965) 19 questions the assumption that patients in the recovery room are too obtunded to be

aware of what goes on about them or to communicate their concern regarding their recent

surgery.

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY
 This chapter discussed the methods used by the researchers, including the research

design, the environment of the study, the participants of the research, the research instrument

used in the study, the data gathering procedure, and the method of analyzing the data gathered in

the study. The methodology served as the guide in the gathering and analysis of data in the study.

(Kallet, 2004).

Methods

The purpose of this study is to explore various lived experiences of the patients in public

and private hospitals.