Interlinking Factors –
Visiting the GP & Excessive Alcohol
There are many government schemes and media focus on the use of excessive alcohol and the affects it has on health (16). This means people are becoming more and more aware of the dangers. People who do drink excessively may feel targeted by their GP about their drinking if they visit, being blamed and looked at negatively. In reality the GP would help support them and not be judgmental. By avoiding going to the GP, not only are they missing out on receiving health, but they may also be unaware of the actual consumption they are having. In reality they may be consuming 3x more units than they realize, and by not going to the GP they are not going to learn of the real value of their drinking and continue to drink at the level they do. This is both damaging to their health in terms of the drink, but they are also likely to avoid visiting related to other health problems if they believe the GP will bring it up, thus putting themselves at more risk of harm. This can be seen in my questionnaire where 70% of the respondents who reported to either drink concentrated over one – two days, or stated having more units than is recommended, also reported strongly agreeing with ‘If I’m ill I’ll self treat first before visiting the GP’.
(16) dh.gov.uk
Visiting the GP & Smoking
Similarly to Alcohol, smoking is probably the largest government campaigned health issue at the moment. Almost everyone is aware of the dangers of smoking (17), so smokers are aware that they are at risk of causing health problems. They too may feel judged if they visit the GP so avoid visiting when necessary - where 80% of the respondents who reported to either drink concentrated over one – two days, or stated having more units than is recommended, also reported strongly agreeing with ‘If I’m ill I’ll self treat first before visiting the GP’. There are many different health problems associated with smoking, such as cancer and heart attack (18). However these problems often only occur after a long period of time. So while the person is avoiding visiting the GP when they could get help quitting, by the time they do visit due to these seriously health problems it would not have as much benefit of quitting as it would before the health issues arose. Avoidance is often part of a cycle; people are more likely to increase their smoking (19). So if a person starts smoking and chooses not to visit the GP and begins to smoke more than when they started, then they are going to be even more likely to avoid going. By avoiding going they are less likely to receive support and information on quitting, thus more likely to continue to smoke the same if not more, and again not visiting the GP. This cycle can often pursue for years before seriously health problems occur, often before it’s too late. 60% of the respondents said they smoke. 100% of the smokers either agreed or strongly agreed with Item 9: If I’m ill, I’ll self treat first before visiting the GP’, and 80% saying they wouldn’t do anything of they felt sick with the remaining 20% reporting they would only visit the GP if it impaired their daily activities.
