Background: People with a terminal illness and their families who live in rural or remote areas
of Australia face difficulties in accessing palliative care services as a result of physical isolation.
This leads to rural general practitioners (GPs) carrying the burden of care, which is often
exacerbated by a lack of support staff.
Objective: This research addressed the following questions: What are GPs' attitudes to palliative
care in a rural center of Western Australia? What factors contribute to GPs' attitudes
to palliative care in a rural center of Western Australia? What are the perceived barriers to
the provision of palliative care in a rural center of Western Australia?
Design: A qualitative in-depth research design was used for this study due to the exploratory
nature of the research. A model of attitudes that considers an attitude as a summary evaluation
of an issue based on: cognitive information, (thoughts and beliefs), affective or emotional
information, and information concerning behavior, was used.
Participants: Participants were 10 registered GPs located within the Greater Bunbury Division
of General Practice in Western Australia.
Results: Six themes emerged from the research: maintaining patients' quality of life, providing
continuity of care, experiencing emotional issues, collaborating with a multidisciplinary
team, acknowledging the need for education and training, and dealing with the wider
context.
Conclusion: Education and training for rural GPs needs to be relevant to the local context
and needs to focus on emotions and beliefs.
