About the project- Background and purpose
The declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic March 11th 2020, lead to further stress on an already pressured healthcare service system worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic forced healthcare services- alongside other public services- to implement digital solutions for patient management and monitoring as a replacement of person-to-person meetings due to the need to achieve infection control.
Research indicate that remote patient monitoring leads to better patient-assessed quality of life, prevention of complications and minimalization of costs (Bayliss, Siener, Fernald, Crane, & Main, 2003). Such monitoring has been claimed to increase efficiency, and allows for healthcare personnel to remotely educate and communicate with patients (Coye, Haskelkorn, & Demello, 2009). Research on e.g. remote monitoring of patients with lung cancer indicated that they felt well informed, but that they lacked preparation for the full extent of the problems they experienced (Maguire, 2017). A recent study found that when daily automated monitoring, self-management coaching and follow-ups using guideline-based decision support were combined in between-visit care, there were significant reductions in symptom burden overall for cancer patients beginning chemotherapy. Moreover, the main barrier to better symptom management seemed to be provider inaction and clinical inertia (Mooney et al., 2017).
The main aim of the project is to explore different stakeholders’ (patients, relatives, healthcare personnel and leaders) perspectives on a remote management/monitoring solution during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on issues such as infection control and shared decision-making.
Impact
This project will add knowledge to how implementation of remote monitoring and management of cancer patients during the COVID-19 pandemic affect patients, relatives, healthcare personnel and leaders. This knowledge will then be utilized to redesign and improve existing digital solutions, to better meet stakeholders’ needs. These aspects may lead to increased quality and efficiency, as well as improved services.
The digital solution will be increasingly important, not only in times of pandemics, but also in meeting future healthcare challenges. Consequently, this may reduce costs due to a reduction in hospitalizations, prevention of disease or exacerbation of disease, and the patients’ and public need to be in contact with healthcare services may be reduced. Moreover, results from this project will add essential information when planning, developing, implementing and improving healthcare services in general, and digital solutions in special. Outcomes of this project will be of public and political interest both nationally and internationally.
Project’s timeline
01.04.20-31.12.22
Project Type/Financing
This clinical research study receives financial support through strategic fundings from the phd. Initiative at Østfold University College.
Collaboration Partners
- Østfold University College, Faculty of health and welfare
- Østfold Hospital Trust, Department of clinical oncology
- Østfold Hospital Trust, Department of innovation
- The Norwegian Cancer Association
References
- Wu, F., Zhao, S., Yu, B., Chen, Y. M., Wang, W., Song, Z. G., . . . Zhang, Y. Z. (2020). A new coronavirus associated with human respiratory disease in China. Nature, 579(7798), 265- 269. doi:10.1038/s41586-020-2008-3.
- Zhu, N., Zhang, D., Wang, W., Li, X., Yang, B., Song, J., . . . Research, T. (2020). A Novel Coronavirus from Patients with Pneumonia in China, 2019. N Engl J Med, 382(8), 727-733.
- Taylor, K. (2015). Connected health. How digital technology is trnasforming health and social care. Retrieved from London, UK.
- Bayliss, E., Siener, J., Fernald, D., Crane, L., & Main, D. (2003). Descriptions of barriers to selfcare by persons with comorbid chronic diseases. Ann Fam Med, 1(1), 15-21. doi:10.1370/afm.4.