Holderried Tobias A W, Stasik Isabel, Schmitz Marie-Therese, Schmitz Friederike, Meyer Tizian K, Stauß Leonie, Kirschner Martin, Skowasch Dirk, Landsberg Jennifer, Schmid Matthias, Brossart Peter, Holderried Martin
Department of Oncology, Hematology, Immuno-Oncology and Rheumatology, University Hospital Bonn, Bonn, Germany.
Center for Integrated Oncology (CIO) ABCD, Aachen Bonn Cologne Düsseldorf, Germany.
Front Digit Health. 2024 Oct 21;6:1414442. doi: 10.3389/fdgth.2024.1414442. eCollection 2024.
The use of online information and communication is globally increasing in the healthcare sector. In addition to known benefits in other medical fields, possible specific potentials of eHealth lie in the monitoring of oncological patients undergoing outpatient therapy. Specifically, the treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) requires intensive monitoring due to various possible negative side effects. The present study explores cancer patients' perspectives on eHealth and demonstrates how eHealth applications, from the patients' point of view, can contribute to further improving outpatient immunotherapy.
Our multicenter study was executed at the university hospitals in Bonn and Aachen. A structured questionnaire was distributed to patients receiving outpatient immunotherapy. Contents addressed were (1) the patients' attitude towards eHealth applications, (2) the use of modern information and communications technologies (ICT) in (2a) everyday life and (2b) health-related information search including eHealth literacy, (3) the use of internet-enabled devices as well as (4) socio-demographic data. 164 patients were included in the study, of whom 39.0% were female and 61.0% male and the average age was 62.8 years. Overall, there was a high distribution of internet-enabled devices for everyday use and a great interest in integrating eHealth applications into outpatient immunotherapy. The assessment of eHealth potentials significantly depended on age. The younger participants demonstrated a broader use of modern ICT and a higher affinity for its use in outpatient immunotherapy. In some aspects, level of education and gender were also relevant factors influencing the patients' view on eHealth.
This study demonstrates the potential for further integration of eHealth applications into outpatient immunotherapy from the patients' perspective. It indicates a dependency on age and educational level for the further integration of eHealth into patient care in oncology. Due to particular patient needs regarding age, level of education, gender and other subgroups, specific education and training as well as target-group specific digital health interventions are necessary to fully utilize the potentials of eHealth for outpatient immunotherapy. Future studies are required to specifically address target-group specific usability of eHealth applications and eHealth literacy, as well as to address information security and data protection.
在线信息与通信在全球医疗保健领域的应用日益广泛。除了在其他医学领域的已知益处外，电子健康（eHealth）的潜在特定优势在于对接受门诊治疗的肿瘤患者进行监测。具体而言，由于免疫检查点抑制剂（ICI）治疗可能产生各种负面副作用，因此需要进行密集监测。本研究探讨了癌症患者对电子健康的看法，并展示了从患者角度来看，电子健康应用如何有助于进一步改善门诊免疫治疗。
我们的多中心研究在波恩和亚琛的大学医院开展。向接受门诊免疫治疗的患者发放了一份结构化问卷。涉及的内容包括：（1）患者对电子健康应用的态度；（2）现代信息通信技术（ICT）在（2a）日常生活以及（2b）包括电子健康素养在内的健康相关信息搜索中的使用情况；（3）启用互联网设备的使用情况以及（4）社会人口统计学数据。164名患者纳入研究，其中女性占39.0%，男性占61.0%，平均年龄为62.8岁。总体而言，日常使用的启用互联网设备分布广泛，患者对将电子健康应用整合到门诊免疫治疗中兴趣浓厚。对电子健康潜力的评估显著取决于年龄。较年轻的参与者对现代ICT的使用更为广泛，且对其在门诊免疫治疗中的应用亲和力更高。在某些方面，教育水平和性别也是影响患者对电子健康看法的相关因素。
本研究从患者角度展示了将电子健康应用进一步整合到门诊免疫治疗中的潜力。这表明在肿瘤学领域将电子健康进一步整合到患者护理中依赖于年龄和教育水平。由于患者在年龄、教育水平、性别及其他亚组方面存在特定需求，因此需要进行特定的教育和培训以及针对目标群体的数字健康干预措施，以充分利用电子健康在门诊免疫治疗中的潜力。未来的研究需要专门探讨电子健康应用针对目标群体的特定可用性和电子健康素养，以及解决信息安全和数据保护问题。
