Patients' views about information technology in the treatment of hypertension

We assessed patient's attitudes to information technology (IT), their experiences of IT, and their attitudes and expectations concerning its use in the treatment of hypertension. Twenty-one patients with high blood pressure were interviewed before they took part in a pilot study of a computer-based intervention to control high blood pressure; they were aged between 32 and 63 years, and had received medication for one year at most, or no medication at all. Content analysis of the interview transcripts revealed six factors that affected the acceptance and use of IT. These were: the patients' general attitude to IT and its use, their experiences of using IT, their perceptions of the barriers to the use of IT, the advantages of using IT in the treatment of hypertension and the usefulness of IT, and their expectations of the computer program. The patients wanted to take part in the intervention and their attitudes were notably positive even when they had little or no experience of using IT.