Institute of Work Health and Organisations, University of Nottingham, UK.
Patient Educ Couns. 2011 Apr;83(1):113-9. doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2010.05.029.
The current research investigates the potential of online support groups (OSGs) to foster empowerment and how membership might affect the patient/health professional relationship.
246 participants across 33 OSGs completed an online questionnaire.
All empowerment processes and outcomes identified by van Uden-Kraan et al. [1] were found to be present. All empowerment outcomes were adequately predicted by empowerment processes. The majority (82.2%) of participants had discussed information found online with their health professional and most (74.2%) were satisfied with the response. Around 60% of participants felt membership of an OSG had affected the relationship with their health professional and from qualitative responses the effects were mostly positive.
OSGs have the potential to produce empowerment outcomes for those who choose to use them. Furthermore, users report a positive reaction to information found online from their health professionals.
Although not all patients will benefit from using OSGs, health professionals suggesting their use could ensure that they reach the maximum receptive audience. Furthermore, this research could be used to encourage a more 'net friendly' attitude amongst health professionals.
本研究调查了在线支持小组（OSG）促进赋权的潜力，以及成员身份如何影响医患关系。
33 个 OSG 中的 246 名参与者完成了在线问卷。
van Uden-Kraan 等人[1]确定的所有赋权过程和结果都存在。所有赋权结果都可以由赋权过程充分预测。大多数（82.2%）参与者已经与他们的健康专业人员讨论了在线上找到的信息，大多数（74.2%）对回复感到满意。约 60%的参与者表示，加入 OSG 影响了他们与健康专业人员的关系，从定性反应来看，这种影响大多是积极的。
OSG 有可能为那些选择使用它们的人带来赋权结果。此外，用户报告对健康专业人员从在线上找到的信息有积极的反应。
尽管并非所有患者都能从使用 OSG 中受益，但健康专业人员建议他们使用 OSG 可以确保他们接触到最大的受众。此外，这项研究可以用来鼓励健康专业人员采取更“网络友好”的态度。
