JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Digital health services are increasingly used in hospital-based outpatient care, offering remote monitoring, patient-reported outcomes, information sharing, and asynchronous communication. While expected to improve self-management, timeliness, and efficiency, research on patients' experiences remains limited.

Objective:

The aim of this study was to explore and gain in-depth knowledge about the experiences of patients with chronic or long-term conditions enrolled in a digital outpatient care intervention for 6 months.

Methods:

We conducted an exploratory qualitative interview study with 17 adult patients with cancer, interstitial lung disease, epilepsy, or complicated pain who used a digital outpatient service for six months. Individual telephone interviews were conducted using a semi-structured guide, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed with thematic analysis to generate codes and themes. Participants had a median age of 62 years (range 36–83), with 8 females and 9 males.

Results:

The thematic analysis led to one main theme “Digital outpatient care as a flexible service supporting patients’ self-management”, informed by three subthemes “The ongoing nature of managing a chronic condition and how the digital service meet the patients' desire for autonomy in their care,” “Digital tools flexibly address the patients’ unique needs, but reliability depends on patient interaction,” and “Digital services enhance the patients' sense of safety through easy access to a relation with competent healthcare workers.” The themes highlight patients' appreciation for greater flexibility in their care and their desire to self-manage with the support of easily accessible healthcare workers. Patients recognized the importance of actively engaging with the digital solution to fully benefit from its opportunities and emphasized the critical role of healthcare workers in fostering their sense of security.

Conclusions:

Digital outpatient care was experienced as flexible and supportive for patients with long-term conditions. The increased possibility of interacting with healthcare workers was welcomed by the patients, and the combination of flexibility, self-monitoring and addressing concerns regarding their self-management may increase the patients experience of autonomy. Future research should address whether such digital outpatient clinics are positive for a wider range of patients, associated health outcomes, and any positive effects on a health system level. Clinical Trial: NCT05068869 https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05068869 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/46649