Currently submitted to: JMIR Formative Research
Date Submitted: Jan 30, 2026
Open Peer Review Period: Feb 2, 2026 - Mar 30, 2026
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Enhancing palliative home care with telehealth and artificial intelligence: Kids’ stuff or complex intervention? A mixed methods study
ABSTRACT
Background:
Telehealth and artificial intelligence are increasingly used in specialized palliative outpatient care, offering potential benefits but facing challenges, particularly regarding user acceptance. To date, there is a lack of knowledge about the extent to which digital health applications may be transferable between different areas of palliative care.
Objective:
This study evaluates the transferability of concrete needs, expectations, and concerns regarding telehealth and artificial intelligence from specialized outpatient palliative care for children to specialized outpatient palliative care for adults, using the example of the PalliDoc Mobile App.
Methods:
Two specialized outpatient palliative care teams for adults using PalliDoc (a pediatric-origin mobile app) were surveyed employing a sequential mixed-methods approach to conduct the needs assessment: a focus group study with quantitative needs prioritization, followed by a questionnaire survey on user acceptance. 25 members from both teams, representing urban and rural care areas in Germany, participated in the focus groups. 17 responded to the questionnaire.
Results:
A total of 13 needs were identified within the examined care teams for adults, with functions focusing on voice input and output as well as organizational tasks being the highest priority. Unlike in pediatrics, video contacts, telemetry and electronic patient-reported outcome measures are neither used here now nor intended to be used in the future. The identified concerns predominantly addressed the potential risk of artificial intelligence–assisted documentation altering or distorting healthcare professionals’ perception of patient-related information.
Conclusions:
Cross-setting telehealth applications may work but are no “plug-and-play solution”. Needs and concerns in each setting should be addressed to guarantee customized services. Clinical Trial: This study is registered in the German Register of Clinical Trials under the ID DRKS00036054 (https://www.drks.de/search/de/trial/DRKS00036054/details).
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