Table 1 Nine hypotheses about doctors’ experiences with priority setting during the pandemic
Topic | # | Hypothesis |
|---|---|---|
(i) Familiarity with priority setting criteria and guidelines | H1 | A majority of doctors were familiar with the three official priority setting criteria |
H2 | A majority of doctors were not familiar with the legislation concerning priority setting | |
H3 | A majority of doctors were not familiar with the national guidelines for priorities during the pandemic | |
H4 | More doctors in managerial positions were familiar with the guidelines | |
H5 | A majority of doctors did not use the national guidelines for priorities during the pandemic | |
(ii) Experiences with actual priorities during the pandemic | H6 | A majority of doctors experienced that some of their patients were given a lower priority |
H7 | Of those who experienced lower priority for their patients, a majority deemed this medically indefensible | |
H8 | Doctors in psychiatry more often reported patients being given a lower priority than doctors in somatic care | |
H9 | Doctors in primary care (i.e., GPs, nursing home doctors) more often reported their patients being given lower priority than doctors in hospitals |