Challenges in Accessing Health Services in Remote Australia: A Study

This research proposal delves into the critical issue of health service accessibility in Australia's remote areas. It outlines a qualitative research approach, focusing on understanding the experiences of individuals in these regions. The study aims to identify the types of health services available, pinpoint the challenges to accessing these services, and explore potential solutions. The proposal includes a literature review highlighting the significance of the research question, a discussion of the theoretical framework, and the selection of a phenomenological method to gather data through interviews and observations. The report addresses conformability checks, outlines the target sample size and inclusion/exclusion criteria, and justifies the use of random sampling. The research seeks to understand the barriers faced by remote communities in accessing healthcare, including factors like limited education, employment opportunities, and income. The findings are expected to inform strategies for improving healthcare delivery, such as leveraging telehealth, establishing alternative care sites, and addressing social determinants of health. The research also identifies the importance of government and healthcare sector initiatives in overcoming these challenges and improving the health outcomes for remote populations.

Exploring The Challenges For
Accessibility Of Health Services In
Australia's Remote Areas

Table of Contents
Research proposal............................................................................................................................3
1. Which type of research methodology are you proposing to use?...........................................3
3. If you are proposing to do a qualitative study, what is your research question, and what are
the other main variables or phenomenon of interest that would also need to be considered?....3
4. Provide a brief literature review and significance of research question.................................4
5. Identify theoretical framework to use for interpretation of findings.......................................5
7. Use of research design for proposing qualitative study and its suitability..............................5
9. Utilising checks on conformability and their implementation................................................6
10. Target sample size and inclusion or exclusion criteria.........................................................7
11. Which sampling technique is used and reason for their best fit to research question...........7
12. The data collection method and why are they best fit for research question........................8
References........................................................................................................................................9

Research proposal
1. Which type of research methodology are you proposing to use?
Qualitative research method can be known as an exploratory investigation primarily
which utilised to understand opinions, motivations and reasons. It concerned with understanding
of human behaviour from the informant's perspectives and facilitate to make assumptions related
to dynamic & negotiated reality. However, it is suitable to analyse the difficulties faced by
citizens living in reported areas of Australians to gain access to healthcare services (Kaur and
Mittal, 2017). In addition to this, it is suitable to determine various problems that restrict people
to receive medical facilities so that effective actions should be taken by government for their
welfare. Moreover, qualitative descriptions are significant for recommending probable relations,
effects, causes and dynamic processes.
3. If you are proposing to do a qualitative study, what is your research question, and what are the
other main variables or phenomenon of interest that would also need to be considered?
By proposing qualitative study, the main variables are considered that are related to
difficulties faced by people living in remote places of Australia in order to gain access of
healthcare services for maintaining their better health conditions. It is necessary to determine
present available services and challenges regarding care facilities that helps to solve relevant
issues (Daniel, 2017).
Research Aim:

“Exploring The Challenges For Accessibility Of Health Services In Australia's Remote
Areas”.
Research objectives:
 To identify types of health services available in Australia's Remote Areas.
 To find out challenges for accessibility of health services within Australia's remote areas.
 To analyse ways through which challenges for accessibility of health services can be
overcome.
Research questions:
 How to identify types of health services available in Australia's Remote Areas?
 What are the challenges for accessibility of health services within Australia's remote
areas?
 How to analyse ways through which challenges for accessibility of health services can be
overcome?
4. Provide a brief literature review and significance of research question
Types of health services available in Australia's Remote Areas
The people living in rural and remote areas of Australia have shorter lives and high level
of injuries, disease etc. As per views given by John Wakerman (2017), it is observed they do not
have proper facilities and face difficulties to gain access for desired healthcare services due to
which they have small life span as compared to other citizens. However, it has been analysed that
there is a poor availability of medical facilities which the reason behind sort life and severe
injuries of people staying in remote places of country. Moreover, reason behind poor health also
consist certain components such as lack of employment opportunities, income, access to care
facilities and education.
The challenges for accessibility of health services within Australia's remote areas
The accessibility regarding medical facilities is very difficult for citizens staying in
remote places of the nation which should be identified for preventing them. According to the
opinion of Deborah van Gaans and Elsa Dent (2018), it consist various factor such as lack of
employment opportunities, education, limited income and less care homes with limited
practitioners, machines or other facilities. However, lack of education do not encourage these
people to focus on their health and they are not aware about to gain proper services. Short

employment opportunities make such individuals financially weak that create difficulty to gain
access to medical facilities.
The ways through which challenges for accessibility of health services can be overcome
The government & healthcare sector authorities can establish effective strategies and
work on them to overcome challenges of gaining care services access in remote places. Sara
Heath (2019) states that it is necessary to solve problem of insufficient staff members in
hospitals of rural areas so that people will get proper service on time. However, it is significant
for leveraging telehealth in order to overcome geographic barrier of healthcare for providing
support to citizens in terms of improving their health status. It requires to establish alternative
supportive care sites and address social determinants of health.
The significance of given research is question is to understand challenges and relevant
reasons along with evaluating effective strategies to overcome with problems of gaining access
to healthcare services in remote areas of Australia.
5. Identify theoretical framework to use for interpretation of findings
Considering the views of different authors, it has been discussed that various factors are
responsible for creating difficulties for citizens living in remote places of country. It includes the
problem of these problem of people to not gaining access for desired healthcare services in order
to become well being. However, it consist certain factors that are responsible such as lack of
education, employment opportunities and limited income due to which they are not capable to
receive desired care facilities (Neđo and et. al., 2018). Moreover, it has been evaluated that
Australian citizens of remote places have shorter lives and poorer access to medical services to
various diseases or injuries. Meanwhile, it is observed that insufficient staff members, limited
care homes and lack of technology is responsible for limited life of span of selected citizens.
Additionally, it has been analysed that effective strategies should be make and implement by
government like organising alternative care site, apply telehealth services and recruit sufficient
care practitioners in hospitals of remote places of Australia.
7. Use of research design for proposing qualitative study and its suitability
Qualitative method can be divided into five sub categories such as Ethnography,
Phenomenology, Grounded Theory and historical analysis. Meanwhile, ethnography can be
considered as much familiar and suitable kind of qualitative approach in context of UX
professionals. It consist the criterion in which investigator immerses themselves in target

participants atmosphere in terms of understanding the cultures, goals, motivations, challenges
and emerging themes. However, phenomenological technique that us helpful to described
regarding activity, phenomenon or event with the help of conducting interviews, watching
videos, visiting remote places of Australia and reading documents. It consist the utilisation of
combination of mentioned methods to examine participants regarding issues faced for gaining
access to healthcare services (JIANG and et. al., 2017). Moreover, grounded theory is
responsible for considering observation for providing proper explanation of theory behind
difficulties regarding access of medical facilities in Australian's remote areas. It is helpful to
understand the causes of problems that are helpful for government and healthcare sector
authorities to make effective care programs for citizens living in remote areas of the country.
At the other hand, Historical analysis can be described as to study previous data and
relevant information about difficulty to gain access of care facilities. It includes to examine
previous studies and data collected from journals & books in order to understand the about
reasons behind problem of healthcare in remote places of the nation. The given study will focus
on phenomenological method in order to analyse the factors due to which people of remote areas
are able to gain medical facilities (Zhang and et. al., 2018). It is necessary to identify potential
problems which are helpful to motivate government and care sector authorities to make effective
strategy or programs to provide medical benefits for these people effectively.
9. Utilising checks on conformability and their implementation
The conformability refers to a degree to which other people also agree or corroborate
with outcomes of conducted investigations. It is necessary to document the processes on
qualitative investigation in order to recheck information, unearth negative instances that
contradict previous observations, play devil's advocate and more to ensure conformability.
However, it can be categorised into several categories such as credibility, auditability and
transferability in which most favourable one shroud be used on conformability. Initially,
credibility can be described as reasonable that is a components of qualitative study shows the
extent to which approach of investigation and results remaining in sync mode. It has been done
with the help of usually accepted natural phenomenon & laws, standards and observations.
At the other hand, Auditability refers to an approach through which a reader become
capable to follow steps of investigation including formulation of research questions, data
collection and then interpretation of findings related to study. It is helpful for reader to

understand and followed way if thinking of an investigator while conducting whole research.
Transferability can be explained as an external validity in which similar research methodology
implemented to another work of sample in similar way to achieve same outputs. It has been
analysed that external validity is not applicable in context of qualitative study (Singh and et. al.,
2019). However, it is analysed that qualitative research validity is depends rather on
transferability due which it is not favourable for present investigation. The credibility is used in
given qualitative research in order to analyse about difficulties faced by Australian citizens living
in remote places of country regarding access to desired healthcare services.
10. Target sample size and inclusion or exclusion criteria
Target sample size consist 50 participants who were citizens belongs to remote areas of
Australia to gain their opinions regarding problems faced by them while seeking for healthcare
services or medications. However, people belongs that place are much able to provide proper
answer that is favourable to gain accurate relevant information for this investigation in terms of
attaining desired outcomes. In addition to this, inclusion criterion is that all respondents are
between 25 to 40 years of age who staying there and spending their lives by dealing with poor
availability of medical facilities. In contrary to this, exclusion criteria includes that kids and old
age people are strictly avoided and severe diseased people are also not considers in group of
participants selected for investigation (da Silva Alves and et. al., 2019). Moreover, these
inclusion and exclusion aspects are strictly followed to conduct research properly along with
gaining appropriate findings. Furthermore, the select age group is able to provide knowledge
about their childhood time and related difficulties and present issue regarding the poor health
services and reasons behind the same.
11. Which sampling technique is used and reason for their best fit to research question
Sampling can be described as a statistical approach through which an investigator can
select appropriate participants for their research and helps to make statistical inferences about the
target population. It can be categorised into two main categorise such as random and non-
random sampling in which suitable be can be used to select respondents from remote places of
nation. The random sampling is used in given research to make group of participants and this
method is also further divided into sub sections. However, it consist simple, equal probability
systematic, stratified single and stratified multistage random sampling.

In contrary to this, other method of sampling including non random sampling which can
be used in qualitative investigation but it is very costly approach. It can be divided into subs
sections again such as availability, quota and expert sampling but they are generally not utilised
by investigator because of their expensive and high cost. The present report about exploring
challenges regarding accessibility of healthcare sector while seeking by citizens of remote areas
of Australia. This method is bet fit in current study as it is helpful to select correct respondents in
terms of gathering accurate information to achieve appropriate outcomes.
12. The data collection method and why are they best fit for research question
The data collection methods can be divided into primary and secondary based on
respective sources of gathering information regarding issue of remote Australia's regarding
access of healthcare. However, secondary data is already used previously and that can be
collected from various sources such as journals, books, magazines, articles, websites and so on.
In context of present qualitative research, primary sources are utilised including interviews,
questionnaires, surveys, focus groups, participant observation, field observation and
physiological measures. Moreover, the approach of questionnaire has been used to collect
information form selected respondents about problem related to access of care facilities and find
out reasons behind the same.

References
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