Trust and distrust in low-income Michigan residents during the early COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Trust and distrust have shaped health behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the start of the pandemic, misinformation and polarization eroded trust across the United States. In states like Michigan, pandemic restrictions led to significant unrest. Michiganders also faced disproportionate morbidity and mortality from COVID-19 during this period.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this qualitative study was to understand the individual experiences of trust in low-income Michiganders during the early COVID-19 pandemic.

PARTICIPANTS

Twenty-four participants at or below 200% of the federal poverty line who resided in Michigan were recruited for this study.

APPROACH

Interviews were conducted during the winter of 2020 using a formal interview guide that addressed sources of information, perceptions of risk and exposure, protective behaviours and impacts of the pandemic at home, work and in receiving healthcare.

RESULTS

Thematic analysis showed that themes of trust and distrust emerged in multiple facets of our participants' experiences, including in the context of information sources, the behaviours of others, health, financial security, employment and overall safety. Trust and distrust in low-income communities often stemmed from significant financial and economic vulnerabilities and instability in access to healthcare that was exacerbated in the pandemic. Furthermore, participant trust was shaped by internal (e.g., relationships with others) and external (e.g., source of information, social inequity) factors that influenced their perceptions and experiences during the pandemic.

CONCLUSION

Trust has played an important role in many aspects of the experiences of low-income communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is important for clinicians to consider as COVID-19 becomes endemic, and trust continues to impact patients' approaches to vaccines, testing and treatment options.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

This study was designed and conducted with the assistance and input of the members of the DECIDERS Steering Committee, a diverse statewide network of community members in Michigan. The DECIDERS team allows community members to have a voice in the design and conduct of health research, and collaborates with researchers to improve health across the state of Michigan.

Outcomes in patients undergoing periprocedural interruption of warfarin or direct oral anticoagulants

BACKGROUND

Differences in clinical outcomes following a temporary interruption of warfarin or a direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) for a surgical procedure are not well described. Differences in patient characteristics from practice-based cohorts have not typically been accounted for in prior analyses.

AIM

To describe risk-adjusted differences in postoperative outcomes following an interruption of warfarin vs DOACs.

METHODS

Patients receiving care at six anticoagulation clinics participating in the Michigan Anticoagulation Quality Improvement Initiative were included if they had at least one oral anticoagulant interruption for a procedure. Inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) was used to balance baseline differences between the warfarin cohort and DOAC cohort. Bleeding and thromboembolic events within 30 days following the procedure were compared between the IPTW cohorts using the Poisson distribution test.

RESULTS

A total of 525 DOAC patients were matched with 1323 warfarin patients, of which 923 were nonbridged warfarin patients and 400 were bridged warfarin patients. The occurrence of postoperative minor bleeding (10.8% vs. 4.7%, p < .001), major bleeding (2.9% vs. 1.1%, p = .01) and clinically relevant nonmajor bleeding (CRNMB) (6.5% vs. 3.0%, p = .002) was greater in the DOAC cohort compared with the nonbridged warfarin cohort. The rates of postoperative bleeding outcomes were similar between the DOAC and the bridged warfarin cohorts.

CONCLUSION

Perioperative interruption of DOACs, compared with warfarin without bridging, is associated with a higher incidence of 30-day minor bleeds, major bleeds, and CRNMBs. Further research investigating the perioperative outcomes of these two classes of anticoagulants is warranted.