Table 1.
Overview of the content analysis results.
| Examples of meaning units | Codesa | Subthemes |
| “I’ve had a wonderful doctor who’s supported and helped me, and who had a personal interest in this type of injury, but many people with these injuries get doctors who don’t care and don’t take these things seriously at all. In my experience, the knowledge and interest of physicians out at the primary care centres varies and is a bit of a game of chance.” [R2, 57-year-old patient] | There are knowledge gaps | A bridgeable knowledge gap in the Swedish health care system |
| “I was given advice from two people who declared me an idiot and...gave me a psychiatric diagnosis on the phone! Because I didn’t have anything broken in my neck!” [R7, 44-year-old patient] | Psychologizing from health care | |
| “I so reject this argument that I expected to feel worse. What, why would I? I mean, I expected to feel better for a year. That was always my hope, that “this will get better, this will get better.”...In the end, you might accept it, but it’s not because of that that you get chronically ill, that you expected it.” [R3, 48-year-old patient] | My experience is questioned | |
| “Well, I’ve gone through about all of these treatments. But I think it’s important to get medication, to reduce the pain. As soon as possible, that is.” [R3, 48-year-old patient] | Examples of purposeful care or self-care | |
| “It was very hard to get any help. Our daughter sought help at the primary health care centre. But there was nothing wrong with her. They took X-rays and there was nothing wrong—that is, according to the doctors. But it turned out, since she’s been to NN, where we did this upright MRI, she has a lot of injuries. [...] Regular health care, there’s not a lot of help to get.” [R13, 74-year-old relative] | Develop adequate guidelines for investigation! | |
| “It says you should seek care at once if you have a lot of neck pain or headache after an accident. But I think some people haven’t had a lot of pain in the beginning, but the symptoms come later on!” [R4, 49-year-old relative] | Patient information is lacking | Lack of patient safety |
| “Let’s see what else I wrote. Vertigo, here, that vertigo can also be from anxiety. It doesn’t have to be. There may be injuries. There are actually quite delicate structures up there.” [R3, 48-year-old patient] | Downplaying from the health care system | |
| “How they describe that there are nerve fibres that transmit information...you really understand that there are things that can be injured. I find that this has improved!” [R3, 48-year-old patient] | Patient information is sufficient | The health care system as an authority |
| “The ones who must be informed are relatives and those in the periphery. Personnel at the social insurance agency, employers, colleagues, neighbours!” [R1, 35-year-old patient] | Patient information has an important role | |
| “And she has been active, as much as she could, given the injuries. So she didn’t...She’s really pretty tough. She’s been training and has tried to be active. She has dogs so she’s out a lot in the woods and fields. But the sort of help that you got at that pain unit...There’s no difference if you’ve got neck pain or shoulder pain or knee pain. Everyone had to do the same thing. So...they considered her as...like she wasn’t interested! When she couldn’t manage!” [R13, 74-year-old relative] | Feelings of abandonment | Lack of help and support |
| “These...interest groups, there’s really an immense amount of knowledge there.” [R3, 48-year-old patient] | Peer support is valuable |
aThree codes were excluded from the analysis as they did not relate to the research question: how I/my relative was injured, my/my relative’s symptoms, and my economy.