ipsos covid-19 poll: assessing attitudinal differences
TRANSCRIPT
IPSOS COVID-19 POLL: ASSESSING ATTITUDINAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN VETERANS USING AND NOT USING VA SERVICES
IPSOS COVID-19 POLL: ASSESSING ATTITUDINAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN VETERANS USING AND NOT USING VA SERVICES 2
Ipsos conducted a poll of Veterans nationwide to better understand their knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors about their experiences with COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. Amidst the unprecedented level of disruption to modern healthcare systems and benefits providers, the poll aims to inform the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Veterans Health Administration (VHA) on how Veterans assess VA’s pandemic response in order to better identify opportunities to serve Veterans moving forward during this crisis. The differences between the responses of Veterans using VA healthcare compared to those who are not using VA healthcare presents opportunities for VA to more effectively communicate the support available to Veterans during this crisis and the specific measures that are being taken to combat and contain the spread of COVID-19.
In a study which fielded a combination of both those using and not using VA healthcare, 86% of Veterans who responded believe VA has a ‘great deal’ or ‘some’ responsibility to combat the spread of COVID-19. However, Veterans using VA healthcare hold this belief more strongly, as nearly 50% of them indi-cated that VA has a ‘great deal’ of responsibility to combat the virus. This is compared to only 35% of Veterans not using VA healthcare.
VETERANS AGREE VA HAS A GREAT DEAL OF RESPONSIBILITY TO COMBAT THE SPREAD OF COVID-19
APPROXIMATELY 3 OUT OF EVERY 4 VETERANS NOT USING VA HEALTHCARE DID NOT KNOW HOW GOOD OR POOR OF A JOB VA HAS DONE IN CONTAINING THE SPREAD OF COVID-19
The study found that VA healthcare users were more likely (65%) to say VA is doing a ‘very good’ or ‘good’ job containing the spread of COVID-19, compared to Veterans not using VA healthcare (21%). The majority of Veterans not using VA healthcare (74%) said they did not know how good or poor of a job VA has done in containing the spread of COVID-19.
The inability of Veterans not using VA healthcare to provide an informed response to this question under-scores an opportunity for VA to promote COVID-19 efforts to the Veteran population more broadly. With a targeted strategic marketing and communications plan, VA can inform these Veterans of the resources made available during this pandemic.
Very Good / Good Job Don’t Know Very Poor / Poor Job
100
80
60
40
20
0
How good or poor of a job has VA done in containing the spread of
the coronavirus/COVID-19?
Veterans usingVA Healthcare
Veterans not usingVA Healthcare
64
21
33
74
3 4
Some responsibility A great deal of responsibility
100
50
0
How much responsibility does VA have in combating the spread
of the coronavirus/COVID-19?
AllVeterans
VA HealthcareUsers
Non-VA Healthcare Users
41 50 35
45 41 48% T
op
-2 B
ox
IPSOS COVID-19 POLL: ASSESSING ATTITUDINAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN VETERANS USING AND NOT USING VA SERVICES 3
The study found that VA healthcare users are significantly more likely to agree that VA is prepared to continue providing care to Veterans during this outbreak (72%). They are also more likely to agree that VA has done a good job informing them about how to protect themselves against COVID-19 (69%) and what services and resources are at their disposal during this outbreak (67%).
With the possibility of VA hospitals opening their doors to civilian patients to address healthcare capacity needs, the poll finds that Veterans are not as likely to agree that VA should provide care to civilians diagnosed with COVID-19.
The only issue that both Veterans using and Veterans not using VA healthcare agreed on was that VA hospitals should care for civilian patients diagnosed with COVID-19. If called upon, VA would need to be able to open its doors to care for an overflow of civilian patients, enacting its “Fourth Mission.” 1
7241
6922
6826
6715
6234
526
4510
4023
2933
% Strongly agree / Somewhat agree Veterans using VA Healthcare Veterans not using VA Healthcare
0 20 40 60 80
VA is prepared to continue providing care toVeterans during the coronavirus outbreak
VA has done a good job informing Veterans howto protect themselves against the coronavirus
VA can answer any questions or concernsI have regarding coronavirus
VA has done a good job of informing me about the resourcesavailable to help get through the coronavirus outbreak
VA is prepared to care for Veterans whoare diagnosed with coronavirus
VA has been responsive to my needs and requestsfor information during this outbreak
VA has been able to address questions or concernsI have about my bene�ts during this outbreak
VA will be able to provide care to both Veterans andnon-Veterans during this outbreak if needed
VA should provide care to non-Veteranswho are diagnosed with coronavirus
To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements:
VETERANS USING VA HEALTHCARE CONSISTENTLY HAVE MORE POSITIVE PERCEPTIONS OF HOW VA IS RESPONDING TO THE OUTBREAK COMPARED TO VETERANS NOT USING VA HEALTHCARE
1 https://www.va.gov/about_va/
IPSOS COVID-19 POLL: ASSESSING ATTITUDINAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN VETERANS USING AND NOT USING VA SERVICES 4
Regarding health and wellbeing, Veterans using VA healthcare are significantly more likely to be ‘extremely concerned’ about getting COVID-19 when compared to Veterans not using VA healthcare (23% vs. 15%). Veterans using VA healthcare were also found to be significantly more likely to say COVID-19 would be ‘extremely serious’ for their health com-pared to Veterans not using VA healthcare (29% vs. 21%).
It is commonly understood amongst public health experts that those with pre-existing conditions and those who are older in age are at a higher risk of contracting the virus. This is important to note for VA as it substantiates the claim that the patient population is more likely to be at risk for COVID-19— the median age of a Veteran in the U.S. is 64 years old.2 Of those respondents in this study using VA healthcare, 54% were above the age of 65 years old compared to only 44% of those Veterans not using VA healthcare. Out of the non-VA healthcare users who responded, 4.2% were between the ages of 18–29 years old compared to only 1% of Veterans using VA healthcare.
How would you rate your overall physical health?
3848
How often do you feel lonely or isolated from those around you?
114
How would you rate your overall mental health?
6375
% Excellent / Very Good Veterans using VA Healthcare Veterans not using VA Healthcare
% Often / Always Veterans using VA Healthcare Veterans not using VA Healthcare
0 20 40 60 80
0 5 10 15
Because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition, do you have diffi culty doing errands alone such as visiting a doctor’s offi ce or shopping?
136
Over the past 2 weeks, how often have you been bothered by any of the following problems: feeling down, depressed, or hopeless?
125
% Yes Veterans using VA Healthcare Veterans not using VA Healthcare
% More than half the days / nearly every day Veterans using VA Healthcare Veterans not using VA Healthcare
0 5 10 15
0 5 10 15
VETERANS USING VA HEALTHCARE ARE MORE CONCERNED ABOUT GETTING INFECTED AND BELIEVE IT WILL HAVE A SERIOUS EFFECT ON THEIR HEALTH AS COMPARED TO VETERANS NOT USING VA HEALTHCARE
2 https://www.va.gov/vetdata/docs/SpecialReports/KeyStats.pdf and https://www.va.gov/vetdata/docs/QuickFacts/2017_Veterans_Profile_Fact_Sheet.PDF
IPSOS COVID-19 POLL: ASSESSING ATTITUDINAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN VETERANS USING AND NOT USING VA SERVICES 5
When asked about top areas of need and support during the pandemic, a major difference found is that Veterans using VA healthcare are significantly more likely to say that one of their areas of need during this outbreak is getting mental health support (10% vs. 3%). When asked about all other topics, both sets of Veterans were in alignment.
Mental health awareness, especially suicide prevention, is a top priority for VA. This data shows that during the pandemic especially, VA needs to pay careful attention to this population, which is unpredictable as suicide strikes across all demographic groups and the population can be hard-to-reach. Quarantine and stay-at-home orders may also increase the stressors on those susceptible to mental health issues. This makes it even more important to provide information and resources to those at risk for self-directed violence, domestic violence, and depression. Using natural language processing (NLP) and artificial intelligence (AI), VA is equipped with the technology needed to pinpoint regions of the United States that are “hot-spots” for these risks. This knowledge and trend data empowers VA to make strategic, empirically-based decisions for intervention that can save resources and decrease response time.
Top areas of need and support for Veterans both using and not using VA Healthcare during this pandemic
Having enough groceries
Access to healthcare support
Having essential medications
Finding entertainment for myself/family
Paying rent or housing loans
Getting mental health support
Medical device/prosthetic maintenance
Finding employment
Paying for student tuition or loans
Filing disability claims
Getting survivor support
46
28
22
15
12
6
4
4
2
1
1
0 10 20 30 40 50
While Veterans using VA think highly of the agency, VA should continue to pay close attention to its patients’ top needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. The inability to access fundamental care can quickly become a contributing factor to exposure and disease susceptibility, especially during a global pandemic. VA must remain agile in this rapidly changing environment and stay in tune with real-time knowledge of public perceptions to effectively communicate with its patients, caregivers, and the nation.
VETERANS USING VA HEALTHCARE ARE MORE LIKELY TO SAY THEY NEED MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT DURING THE PANDEMIC
IPSOS COVID-19 POLL: ASSESSING ATTITUDINAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN VETERANS USING AND NOT USING VA SERVICES 6
Ipsos maintains a dedicated in-house research group that specializes in conducting patient experience research for the nation’s largest private and public- sector healthcare providers. We have a proven track record of providing our clients with methodological innovations, highly cost-effective data collection strat-egies, and improved reporting structures. Supporting this research group is the Ipsos KnowledgePanel,® which is the largest and most well-established online panel that is representative of the adult US popu-lation, with 60,000+ members and 2,200+ profile variables, including approximately 5,000 Veterans. Probability-based sampling produces credible, unbiased point estimates that can be reported with confidence intervals. The Panel is used by clients to inform public debate and policy, meet regulatory reporting requirements, and advance business strategy through accurate market sizing, and more.
The survey was conducted using the web-enabled KnowledgePanel.® Our recruitment process employs a scientifically developed, address-based sampling methodology using the latest Delivery Sequence File of the USPS—a database with full coverage of all delivery points in the U.S. Households are randomly selected from all available households in the U.S. Persons in these households are invited to join and participate in the web-enabled KnowledgePanel.® For those potential panel members who do not already have internet access, Ipsos provides a tablet and internet connection at no cost to the panel member. Those who join the panel and who are selected to participate in a survey are sent a unique password- protected log-in used to complete surveys online. As a result of our recruitment and sampling methods, samples from KnowledgePanel® cover all households regardless of their phone or internet status and provide fully representative online samples to the research community.
In total, 659 completed surveys were obtained in the United States through the KnowledgePanel® for this release. The survey was fielded from March 31st through April 6th. The survey was fielded to a sample group of Veterans that were selected from a nation-ally representative panel of the U.S. population. The survey was fielded in English only. Findings presented in this report were weighted to have Veteran responses be nationally representative based on the Current Veteran Population Supplemental Survey and the American Community Survey. The results were weighted based on gender, race, ethnicity, census region, metropolitan status, education, household income, service branch, and service year.
ABOUT THIS STUDY
CONTACT THE AUTHORS
Sarah Saxton, Senior Vice President [email protected]
Omar Pedraza, Director [email protected]
Kareem Ismail, Research Analyst [email protected]
At Ipsos we are passionately curious about people, markets, brands, and society. We deliver information and analysis that makes our complex world easier and faster to navigate and inspires our clients to make smarter decisions. With a strong presence in 90 countries, Ipsos employs more than 18,000 people and conducts research programs in more than 100 countries. Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos is con-trolled and managed by research professionals. www.ipsos.com/en-us
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