Using the Computer-based Health Evaluation System (CHES) to Support Self-management of Symptoms and Functional Health: Evaluation of Hematological Patient Use of a Web-Based Patient Portal (Preprint)

Abstract

BACKGROUND Patient portals offer the possibility to assess patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) remotely and first evidence has demonstrated their potential benefits. OBJECTIVE In this study, we evaluated patients’ use of a web-based patient portal where patients can complete PROMs. The portal was developed to supplement routine monitoring at the Department of Internal Medicine V in Innsbruck. METHODS We included patients with cancer who were already participating in the monitoring at the hospital for usage of the patient portal. Patients were introduced to the portal and asked to complete questionnaires prior to their next hospital visits. We used system access logs and three consecutive semi-structured interviews to analyze patients’ usage and evaluation of the portal. RESULTS Between July 2017 and August 2020, we approached N=122 patients for participation in the study, of whom n=102 (83.6%) consented to use the patient portal. Patients were on average 60 (SD 10.4) years old. Of n=71 patients providing data at all study time points, n=26 (36.6%) patients consistently used the portal prior to their hospital visits. During an average session, patients viewed 5.3 different pages and spent 9.4 minutes logged on to the portal. Feedback from interviews was largely positive with no patients reporting difficulties navigating the survey and 50% of patients valuing the self-management tools provided in the portal. CONCLUSIONS Our study demonstrates how a patient portal can complement a routine PROM implementation at the hospital by reducing the burden of administration for the clinical team and offering an additional way for patients to engage with PROMs.

Physicians’ Perceptions of Clinical Utility of a Digital Health Tool for Electronic Patient-Reported Outcome Monitoring in Real-Life Hematology Practice. Evidence From the GIMEMA-ALLIANCE Platform

“…While we have documented a positive uptake of the use of this platform from the physicians’ standpoint, we cannot speculate on the patients’ perception of using this platform. However, a recent study that specifically examined the value of ePRO collection in the hematologic setting (including 102 patients with multiple myeloma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia) focused on the patients’ perception of the use of the portal and provided some reassuring data ( 19 ). The authors found that the majority of patients (84%) were willing to use the portal; however, they also observed that the completion of ePROs decreased over time, mainly because of the patient’s forgetfulness, and suggested ways to increase long-term participation rates ( 19 ).…”

“…However, a recent study that specifically examined the value of ePRO collection in the hematologic setting (including 102 patients with multiple myeloma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia) focused on the patients’ perception of the use of the portal and provided some reassuring data ( 19 ). The authors found that the majority of patients (84%) were willing to use the portal; however, they also observed that the completion of ePROs decreased over time, mainly because of the patient’s forgetfulness, and suggested ways to increase long-term participation rates ( 19 ). In another recent study, 227 lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia patients who completed web-based PRO questionnaires were randomized to care as usual (CAU), or to CAU plus return of PRO results (with or without a web-based self-management intervention) ( 20 ).…”

“…The recent coronavirus disease pandemic has further boosted the adoption of digital health tools that could facilitate remote patient monitoring during emergencies, making ePROs even more critical in enhancing patient-centered care. However, implementation of ePRO monitoring in the routine care of patients with hematologic malignancies has been less documented in the literature ( 18 ), and only recently have we seen valuable evidence in this area ( 19 , 20 ). In any case, there is a paucity of information about users’ perceptions of the clinical utility of digital health tools in routine care.…”

Implementation of daily patient‐reported outcome measurements to support children with cancer

“…We developed ePROtect based on the computer‐based health evaluation system (CHES) 9,10 as an easy‐to‐use application for patients during cancer therapy. Positive findings and previous experience with CHES in adult cancer populations have been incorporated 11,12 .…”