"I Get It, I'm Sick Too": An Autoethnographic Study of One Researcher/Practitioner/Patient With Chronic Illness

Title"I Get It, I'm Sick Too": An Autoethnographic Study of One Researcher/Practitioner/Patient With Chronic Illness
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2023
JournalQual Health Res.
Date Published10/2023
AuthorsCiotti S
Keywordschronic illness, healthcare, Lyme disease, reflexive transdisciplinary
Abstract

The central research question guiding this study is: "What are my experiences with symptom-persistent Lyme disease?" The results of this study suggest reflexivity is an important practice in both health research and healthcare. Relationships with health professionals have a significant impact on patients' healthcare experiences, and engaging in reflexive practice may improve the responsivity of healthcare professionals toward patients' needs and embodied experiences and serve as a check on pre-existing power relations in healthcare. Further, this research contributes to the current academic knowledge on symptom-persistent Lyme disease by offering a reflexive representation of my experiences as a researcher who is also a health professional and a patient within the Canadian healthcare system. Representations of patients' experiences are critical in advancing health research and ensuring equitable care for patients. Autoethnography offers important insights into patients' disease experiences.

URLhttps://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/10497323231201027?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%20%200pubmed