Endoscopy demand among county people in southeast China: A cross-sectional study

Objective: The popularization of gastroenteroscopy and the introduction of comfortable medical care have further promoted the growth of people's demand, especially the demand for painless endoscopy. This cross-sectional study aims to investigate the current situation and change in county people's demand for endoscopy to promote the development of endoscopy centers in county hospitals in southeast China. Methods: From October to December 2021, patients and their family members who came to the Gastroenterology Department in Suichang County People's Hospital of Zhejiang Province were randomly selected to complete the questionnaire. A total of 838 valid questionnaires were collected. Additionally, the original software data of the Endoscopy Center were sampled and retrieved (from October to December every year from 2018 to 2021) for statistical analysis of real-world data. Those who would choose painless endoscopy the next time in the valid questionnaires were included in the painless endoscopy group, while those who would choose ordinary endoscopy the next time were included in the ordinary endoscopy group. Results: The stepwise forward binary logistic regression model analysis showed that, patients with “secondhand smoke exposure” were more willing to choose painless endoscopy (OR = 1.459, 95% CI: 1.050–2.028, p = 0.025). However, patients with an education level of “primary and below” and “junior high school”, and patients who are suffering from “currently experiencing abdominal distension”, were more willing to choose ordinary endoscopy (OR = 0.270, 95% CI: 0.149–0.488, p < 0.001; OR = 0.528, 95% CI: 0.330–0.845, p = 0.008; OR = 0.536, 95% CI: 0.334–0.861, p = 0.010). Patients with previous experience in painless endoscopy tended to choose painless endoscopy the next time, while patients with previous experience in ordinary endoscopy tended to choose ordinary endoscopy the next time (χ2 = 140.97, p < 0.001). From 2018 to 2021, the proportion of painless endoscopy has increased yearly (p < 0.001). Most patients indicated that they would “regularly review gastroenteroscopy” (477/838, 56.9%). Conclusions: With Suichang County of Zhejiang Province as the representative, the demand for painless endoscopy for people's gastrointestinal cancer detection in southeast China has been increasing yearly. The development of endoscopy centers in county-level hospitals can basically meet the demand growth. Meanwhile, advanced concepts such as comfortable medical care and regular follow-up are gradually popularized at the grassroots level in southeast China