Digital vs face-to-face information provision in patient counselling for prenatal screening: A noninferiority...

To evaluate face-to-face information provision in patient counselling for prenatal screening compared with two forms of digital information provision, namely, noninteractive instructional video or interactive video.

We performed a prospective, noninferiority, cluster-randomized controlled trial comparing face-to-face (usual care) with two forms of digital information provision (intervention) in counselling for prenatal screening. This study was performed in the Amsterdam UMC, the Netherlands, in 2017, and included women in the first trimester of pregnancy. Main outcomes were knowledge gained by the patient and counselling duration. We performed a noninferiority analysis.

One hundred forty-one women were included, randomized, and analysed. The baseline characteristics were comparable. The intervention group was noninferior compared with the control group regarding the level of satisfaction. The knowledge grade difference was higher after using intervention, and the duration was significantly longer in the face-to-face group at 23 minutes versus 16 minutes. The addition of interaction with the video made no difference in any of the outcomes.

Adding an instructional video to patient counselling is of added value to improve patient's knowledge and shorten time consumption of the counsellor, therefore possibly saving costs. But this form of counselling maintains the same level of satisfaction.