“How Are You?” Perspectives of Patients and Healthcare Providers on Using Text-Messaging to Support Care for Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis
| dc.contributor.advisor | Barber, Claire Ellen Hawkins | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Hazlewood, Glen | |
| dc.contributor.author | Zafar, Saania Nawab | |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Dempsey, Erika | |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Then, Karen | |
| dc.date | 2023-11 | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2023-09-22T14:22:45Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2023-09-22T14:22:45Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2023-09-14 | |
| dc.description.abstract | Objective: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis may need to access rheumatology care between scheduled visits. WelTel is a virtual care platform that supports two-way text-based messaging between patients and their healthcare team. The objective of the present study was to explore perspectives and experiences of healthcare providers (HCPs) and patients regarding the use of text-messaging via WelTel as an adjunct to routine care. Methods: The 6-month WelTel pilot launched in September 2021 with 70 patients enrolled. Patients received monthly “How are you?” text-message check-ins and could message their healthcare team during clinic hours to request health advice. Thirty-nine patients and 21 HCPs were invited to participate in semi-structured interviews. A thematic analysis of transcripts was conducted using a deductive approach leveraging the Institute of Medicine Quality framework. Results: Thirteen patients (61.5% female, mean age 62, 10 white) completed interviews. Patients’ views suggested that text-messaging with the rheumatology team supported high quality care across multiple quality domains including patient-centeredness, timeliness, efficiency, safety, effectiveness, equity, and appropriateness. Seven HCPs (57% female) completed interviews. HCP perspectives varied dependent on whether they were adopters, partial adopters, or non-adopters of the WelTel platform, with more favorable views reported by adopters. Additional themes reported by HCPs included changes in workload and burnout. Conclusions: This foundational work suggests that patients perceive that adjunct text-messaging based care aids in the provision of high-quality care. Future studies should evaluate the impact on HCP workload and burnout and investigate the effect of texting on patient outcomes. | |
| dc.identifier.citation | Zafar, S. N. (2023). “How are you?” Perspectives of patients and healthcare providers on using text-messaging to support care for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/1880/117185 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.publisher.faculty | Graduate Studies | |
| dc.publisher.institution | University of Calgary | |
| dc.rights | University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. | |
| dc.subject | Rheumatology | |
| dc.subject | Text-messaging in healthcare | |
| dc.subject | Quality of care | |
| dc.subject.classification | Health Sciences | |
| dc.title | “How Are You?” Perspectives of Patients and Healthcare Providers on Using Text-Messaging to Support Care for Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis | |
| dc.type | master thesis | |
| thesis.degree.discipline | Medicine – Community Health Sciences | |
| thesis.degree.grantor | University of Calgary | |
| thesis.degree.name | Master of Science (MSc) | |
| ucalgary.thesis.accesssetbystudent | I require a thesis withhold – I need to delay the release of my thesis due to a patent application, and other reasons outlined in the link above. I have/will need to submit a thesis withhold application. |