GoFundMe campaigns reveal care gaps: study
To gauge how well B.C.’s health and social care system is working, a team of Simon Fraser University researchers recently turned to an unlikely source: GoFundMe campaigns.
The fundraising requests on the crowdfunding website helped researchers identify several weaknesses in the health-care system that may not be easily apparent by looking at more traditional health data, said the study’s lead author, SFU health sciences professor Jeremy Snyder.
“These campaigns are generated every day, in people’s own voices,” he said. “They actually give us a lot of information.”
The study, published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, tracked more than 400 healthrelated GoFundMe campaigns within the Vancouver Coastal Health and Fraser Health regions during a month-long period.
Collectively, the campaigns requested more than $8.5 million in funding and were pledged $3.5 million from about 28,000 donors.
The majority of requests were for funds to cover lost wages, either for those who were sick or undergoing medical treatment, or those who were taking care of someone else, Snyder said. “These are people who, for whatever reason, don’t qualify for EI or other support.”
Co-author Valorie Crooks said a large number of campaigns were designed to help people dealing with cancer, but the number of campaigns for people with Lyme disease was also notable, as many of them were seeking funds to get help outside the country.
Another significant issue in B.C. was the cost of parking at hospitals for people who had to spend significant amounts of time there.
“It really showed the difficulties many have managing the cost of everyday life while having a medical condition,” said Crooks, a professor of geography at SFU.
The study could help governments design “interventions,” such as improved employment insurance, that could address the most prevalent issues.
In the past, the team has done work looking at crowdfunding campaigns in the United States and Canada. GoFundMe requests in the two countries are vastly different, said Crooks, with many in the U.S. asking for help to pay hospital bills.
But the B.C. study also revealed inequalities, reinforcing the idea that the health-care system shouldn’t rely on crowdfunding. Campaigns in Vancouver Coastal Health often received higher donation amounts than those in Fraser Health. Studies by other researchers have shown people in wealthier neighbourhoods with more developed social networks tend to receive more donations than others.
“Medical crowdfunding is very inequitable,” Crooks said. “It should not be viewed as the salvation of the health and social care system.”