Table 2.
Evidence for themes of help seeking behavior, discordance, and reassurance.
| Theme | Evidence | Participant |
|---|---|---|
| Help-seeking behavior | I: So why NHS 24? P: That was…I don’t know. That was…to me, that’s a step before you phone 999 for an ambulance. Erm, and then you’re giving somebody else the decision to… I: Yes. P: …[I]f, though…if they think it’s serious enough, then I, I…I’m wary about taking up people’s time, et cetera…. I: Okay. P: …[I]f it’s, you know, not warranted, sort o’ thing. |
Participant 19, >65 y, woman (preimplementation) |
| P: Well, it’s, it was certainly, um, again, I mean, it was one of these situations where, you know, I had to phone up and the receptionist said, “Is it an emergency,” and I said, “Well, all I can tell you is this is what’s happened….” I: Yeah. P: …[T]his has been my experience, and she said…so she made the de-decision, the receptionist made the decision…[to telephone an ambulance]. I: Right. P: …[W]hich was great because I didn’t want to be wasting the, the GP’s [general practitioner’s] time…. |
Participant 38, ≤65 y, man (postimplementation) | |
| I: So when you got the advice to attend A&E… P: Mm-hmm. I: …[H]ow did you feel about that? P: Oh, that…that…it…it then went from “I’ve got a pain in my chest” to “I’ve got a pain in my chest and someone thinks that my symptoms are serious.” I: Right. P: Um, so it…it escalated a wee bit. So I went from thinking, well, maybe there’s something wrong to, well, it’s maybe more than a maybe. |
Participant 49, >65 y, man (postimplementation) | |
| Discordance | I: I’d like to explore the reason why you don’t feel you can go out. P: I just thought…I think…I just thought I got such a fright, really… I don’t know if I still thought I could see me having a heart attack…. |
Participant 5, >65 y, woman (preimplementation) |
| P: At the time they told me I could go home, that felt good…. I know there’s a bigger picture. | Participant 11, ≤65 y, man (preimplementation) | |
| P: I just know there is something going on. Whether it’s my heart or not I don’t know. | Participant 38, ≤65 y, man (postimplementation) | |
| P: At the back of my mind you’re thinking is this my heart? Am I going to have a heart attack? | Participant 48, ≤65 y, woman (postimplementation) | |
| Reassurance | P: There was absolutely no damage to my heart. | Participant 2, >65 y, woman (preimplementation) |
| P: I feel quite confident about my heart now because of the tests. I’ve no concerns about my heart. | Participant 15, >65 y, man (preimplementation) | |
| P: Once I was discharged with a clean bill, I parked it. | Participant 24, ≤65 y, man (postimplementation) |