JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Electronic patient questionnaires are becoming ubiquitous in healthcare. To address care gaps that contribute to poor asthma management, we developed the electronic asthma management system, which includes a pre-visit electronic patient questionnaire linked to a computerized clinical decision support system.

Objective:

To identify the determinants (barriers/enablers) of patient uptake and completion of a pre-visit mobile health questionnaire.

Methods:

We conducted semi-structured interviews with adult asthma patients in Toronto, Canada. After demonstrating the questionnaire, participants completed it using their smartphones and were then interviewed regarding perceived barriers and enablers to using/completing the questionnaire. Interview questions were based on the Theoretical Domains Framework, to identify determinants of health-related behaviour. We generated themes that addressed the enablers and barriers to the uptake/completion of the questionnaire.

Results:

Twelve participants were interviewed for saturation. Key enablers were: the questionnaire was easy to complete without additional knowledge/skills, was perceived as a priority and responsibility; usage could lead to more efficient and personalized care; completion on one’s own time would be convenient, and uptake and completion could be optimized through patient reminders. Concerns about data security, the usefulness of questionnaire data, the stress of completing it accurately and on time, competing priorities, and preferences to complete the questionnaire on other devices were the main barriers

Conclusions:

These barriers and enablers identified by patients could be addressed by developing implementation strategies to enhance electronic questionnaire usage/completion by patients. As the use of electronic questionnaires grows, our findings might inform implementation efforts across settings and diseases.