Dumaij Adrie C M, Tijssen E C G
Health Technol (Berl). 2011 Aug;1(1):5-23. doi: 10.1007/s12553-011-0003-2. Epub 2011 Mar 30.
A health companion is a patient who supports another patient or patient group with a similar health condition. Health companions deliver more and more support by the Internet. However, little is known about the characteristics of the users, their motivation, type of technology used and effects on health and the healthcare delivery process. The objective of the paper is to understand motivation, technology and effects of on-line health companion contact in the Netherlands concerning chronic diseases (DBM, COPD, CHF, CRD, CMD). The On-line Health Companion Contact Model was created to frame the research process. An extensive on-line questionnaire was taken from patients with various chronic disorders and using on-line health companion contact to obtain quantitative and qualitative data. Obtaining information was found the key motivation for applying on-line health companion contact and several characteristics play a role in the selection to use a specific website, including: closed access; the topics discussed; the easy use; the type of users and a clear structure. Respondents prefer website facilitated by a forum or social networking site. Other factors are the possibility to share experiences with other patients, to find recognition and understanding and to meet new people. These positive aspects are of greater importance than the perceived barriers including privacy concerns, negative stories and whining other users and concerns regarding the quality of information. On-line health companion contact can increase the quality of life and self-management because respondents perceived to be better informed, better able to accept their disease, better deal with their situation and to receive an increased amount of social support.
健康同伴是指支持患有类似健康状况的其他患者或患者群体的患者。健康同伴通过互联网提供越来越多的支持。然而，对于用户的特征、他们的动机、所使用的技术类型以及对健康和医疗服务提供过程的影响，我们知之甚少。本文的目的是了解荷兰在线健康同伴联系在慢性病（糖尿病、慢性阻塞性肺疾病、慢性心力衰竭、慢性肾脏疾病、慢性精神疾病）方面的动机、技术和影响。创建了在线健康同伴联系模型来构建研究过程。从患有各种慢性疾病并使用在线健康同伴联系的患者那里收集了一份广泛的在线问卷，以获取定量和定性数据。发现获取信息是应用在线健康同伴联系的关键动机，并且几个特征在选择使用特定网站时发挥作用，包括：封闭访问；讨论的主题；易用性；用户类型和清晰的结构。受访者更喜欢由论坛或社交网站提供便利的网站。其他因素包括与其他患者分享经验、获得认可和理解以及结识新朋友的可能性。这些积极方面比感知到的障碍更重要，这些障碍包括隐私担忧、负面故事、其他用户的抱怨以及对信息质量的担忧。在线健康同伴联系可以提高生活质量和自我管理能力，因为受访者认为自己能更好地了解信息、更好地接受自己的疾病、更好地应对自己的情况并获得更多的社会支持。
