Does dissatisfaction with physicians lead patients to alternative practitioners?

Abstract

Objectives: To test the dissatisfaction hypothesis by focusing on the use of CAM practitioners by low back pain patients. Moreover, we have distinguished between the complementary use and the alternative use of a CAM practitioner to medical care.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of a sample of 2,056 adults living in metropolitan France.

Results: The likelihood of the alternative use of a CAM practitioner decreased with increasing satisfaction with the general practitioner (OR: 0.990, 95% CI 0.984-0.996). The likelihood of the complementary use of a CAM practitioner (excluding osteopaths) decreased with increasing satisfaction with medical care (OR: 0.984, 95% CI 0.972-0.996).

Conclusions: Our results support the dissatisfaction hypothesis to explain the use of CAM practitioners for low back pain, whether this use is alternative or complementary to medical care. However, concerning the complementary use, our study shows that this hypothesis is invalid for osteopaths.

Keywords: Complementary therapies; Cross-sectional studies; Decision making; France; Health personnel; Patient satisfaction.