A Pilot Study on the Assessment of Q Methodology for Quality of Care in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease in Korea.

Background/Aims Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the gastrointestinal tract that requires lifetime management. Therefore, many studies have tried to establish questionnaires or parameters to assess the quality of care for IBD patients. However, there is no study that investigates the type of patients using the Q methodology, which is subjective and systematically studied, to identify and categorize patient's opinions and subjective thinking. The purpose of this study is to investigate the subjective thinking and necessity of IBD patients. Methods Q-methodology, which provides a method of analyzing the subjectivity of each item, was used. Thirty-four selected Q-statements received from 50 adults were classified into a shape of normal distribution using a 9-point scale. The collected data was analyzed using a QUANL PC program. Results Four types of attitudes toward life sustaining treatment were identified. Type I is called physician dependent type. Type II is called relationship focused type. Type III is called information driven type. Type IV is called social awareness type. Conclusions The results of this study show that IBD patients have four types when they receive treatment. Based on this study, further individualized therapeutic approach is needed for IBD patient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]