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Email, text, video show potential to improve chronic disease care
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In a new study, many patients with chronic diseases that included hypertension, diabetes and vascular disease expressed an interest in using information technologies such as email and video conferencing to aid in the management of their conditions.
“Health care providers have shown considerable interest in using information technologies such as email, text messages and video conferencing to facilitate the management of chronic noncommunicable diseases. We sought to determine whether these technologists are available and appealing to the target population,” researchers for the Interdisciplinary Chronic Disease Collaboration wrote.
They analyzed cross-sectional data collected from 1,849 participants of a computer-assisted telephone survey conducted between February and March 2012 in western Canada. All participants were aged at least 40 years and at least one chronic illness. Hypertension was reported in 81.9% of participants, diabetes in 26.2%, CVD in 21.4% and stroke in 7.9%. More than one chronic condition was observed in 32.2% of participants.
Participants were questioned about their access and willingness to three information technologies — email, text message and video conferencing — to interact with their health care provider.
Most participants were white (87%) and married or in a common-law relationship (67%). More than three-quarters reported owning a computer with Internet access and 73.9% reported owning a mobile phone.
Less than 1% of participants reported using one of the three evaluated information technologies to access health care within the previous year. However, 66.3% expressed an interest in interacting with medical specialists via email. Fewer participants (44.9%) reported an interest in interaction with a medical specialist via text message. About half (50.4%) of the participants were interested in video conferencing with a primary care physician and more (65.1%) were interested in video conferencing with a specialist. Interest in video conferencing varied significantly according to distance between participants and providers. Those who lived further away from a medical specialist were more interested than those who lived closer (70.2% vs. 60.1%; P=.006). Nearly half of the participants who live far from specialists (48.3%) indicated a willingness to use video conferencing if it saved them more than 60 minutes of travel time.
“New information technologies … have the potential to improve chronic disease care,” the researchers wrote. “… These findings suggest that email and video conferencing should be further explored as potential mechanisms for helping Canadians manage chronic diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and vascular disease.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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