Effectiveness of online and face-to-face fatigue self-management programmes for adults with neurological conditions
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Published on: February 13, 2020
Setareh Ghahari1, Tanya Packer
1Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, Australia. setareh.ghahari@gmail.com
Purpose:
To evaluate effectiveness of a face-to-face and an online fatigue self-management programme and to compare these to two control groups (information-only and no-intervention) in a sample of adults (n = 115) with neurological conditions reporting extreme fatigue.
Method:
Non-equivalent pre-test post-test control group design using the Fatigue Impact Scale, Personal Wellbeing Index and Activity Card Sort as primary outcome measures.
Results:
Participants in the two intervention groups and the information-only group showed clinically significant improvements in fatigue over time (p < 0.05). When compared to the no-intervention group, face-to-face participants showed significantly greater improvement in overall and cognitive fatigue, while participants in the online group showed significant improvement in self-efficacy and stress.
Conclusion:
Participation in either the online or face-to-face programme appears to result in improved self-management, however, with different potency depending on outcomes. The improvement in the online information only group further complicates the understanding of the results. With few other comparisons of online and face-to-face self-management protocols available, further research is needed to understand differential impacts which may be related to the delivery format, the rural versus urban split of participants or other unknown factors.