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A four‐country comparison of healthcare systems, implementation of diagnostic criteria, and treatment availability for functional gastrointestinal disorders
Author(s) -
Schmulson M.,
Corazziari E.,
Ghoshal U. C.,
Myung S.J.,
Gerson C. D.,
Quigley E. M. M.,
Gwee K.A.,
Sperber A. D.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
neurogastroenterology and motility
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.489
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1365-2982
pISSN - 1350-1925
DOI - 10.1111/nmo.12402
Subject(s) - multinational corporation , health care , healthcare system , medicine , family medicine , population , developing country , diversity (politics) , business , political science , economic growth , environmental health , finance , economics , law
Background Variations in healthcare provision around the world may impact how patients with functional gastrointestinal disorder ( FGID s) are investigated, diagnosed, and treated. However, these differences have not been reviewed. Purposes The Multinational Working Team of the Rome Foundation, established to make recommendations on the conduct of multinational, cross‐cultural research in FGID s, identified seven key issues that are analyzed herein: (i) coverage afforded by different healthcare systems/providers; (ii) level of the healthcare system where patients with FGID s are treated; (iii) extent/types of diagnostic procedures typically undertaken to diagnose FGID s; (iv) physicians’ familiarity with and implementation of the Rome diagnostic criteria in clinical practice; (v) range of medications approved for FGID s and approval process for new agents; (vi) costs involved in treating FGID s; and (vii) prevalence and role of complementary/alternative medicine ( CAM ) for FGID s. Because it was not feasible to survey all countries around the world, we compared a selected number of countries based on their geographical and ethno‐cultural diversity. Thus, we included Italy and South Korea as representative of nations with broad‐based coverage of healthcare in the population and India and Mexico as newly industrialized countries where there may be limited provision of healthcare for substantial segments of the population. In light of the paucity of formal publications on these issues, we included additional sources from the medical literature as well as perspectives provided by local experts and the media. Finally, we provide future directions on healthcare issues that should be taken into account and implemented when conducting cross‐cultural and multinational research in FGID s.