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Effectiveness of a web-based application to monitor health-related quality of life
Lotte Haverman1, Marion A J van Rossum, Mira van Veenendaal
1Emma Children's Hospital AMC, Meibergdreef 9, Room A3-241, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, Netherlands. l.haverman@amc.nl
Insights
Electronic patient-reported outcomes (ePROs) in pediatric rheumatology improved communication about psychosocial issues and clinician satisfaction. This study suggests ePROs are effective for monitoring health-related quality of life in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Rheumatology
- Health Services Research
- Digital Health
Background:
- Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) monitoring is under-evaluated in pediatric care.
- Children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) face significant HRQoL challenges.
- Electronic patient-reported outcomes (ePROs) offer a potential solution for systematic HRQoL monitoring.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effectiveness of ePROs in pediatric rheumatology.
- To assess the impact of ePROs on communication, referrals, and satisfaction in JIA care.
Main Methods:
- A sequential cohort intervention study involving children with JIA (aged 0-18).
- Web-based questionnaires were used to collect ePROs before consultations.
- The study compared periods with and without discussion of ePROfiles during consultations.
Main Results:
- ePRO use significantly increased discussion of psychosocial topics (P < .01).
- Pediatric rheumatologist satisfaction with care improved significantly (P < .01).
- No significant impact on referrals to psychologists or parental satisfaction was observed.
Conclusions:
- Web-based ePROs effectively enhance communication regarding psychosocial issues in pediatric rheumatology.
- The study recommends the implementation of ePROs in routine pediatric clinical practice.
- ePROs positively impacted clinician-patient communication and satisfaction in JIA management.
Background And Objective:
Monitoring health-related quality of life (HRQoL) by using electronic patient-reported outcomes (ePROs) has been only minimally evaluated in pediatrics. Children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) are at risk for HRQoL problems. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of ePROs in clinical pediatric rheumatology care.
Methods:
All children (aged 0-18 years) with JIA visiting any of the 4 pediatric rheumatology clinics in Amsterdam between February 2009 and February 2010 were eligible for this sequential cohort intervention study. Before an outpatient consultation, children (aged 8-18 years) or parents (of children aged 0-7 years) completed web-based questionnaires. The resulting ePROfile was provided to the pediatric rheumatologist (PR). The study was divided into a control period in which the ePROfile was not discussed during consultation, and an intervention period in which the ePROfile was provided and discussed during consultation. Effectiveness was evaluated in terms of communication about different HRQoL topics, referral to a psychologist, and satisfaction with the consultations.
Results:
Out of the eligible JIA patients, 176 (65%) participated in the study. Use of the ePROfile increased discussion of psychosocial topics (P < .01), as well as the PR's satisfaction with provided care during consultation (P < .01). The use of ePROfiles did not affect referrals to a psychologist or parental satisfaction. Parents and PRs evaluated the use of the ePROfile as positive in 80% to 100% of the consultations.
Conclusions:
Our web-based application to systemically monitor HRQoL problems in pediatric rheumatology contributed significantly to communication about psychosocial issues in a positive way. We recommend implementation of ePROs in pediatric clinical practice.
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