Web-based Guidance for Assisted Reproductive Technology With an Online App (myFertiCare): Quantitative Evaluation...

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Reproductive Medicine
• Patient Support Systems

Background:

• Assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) impose significant physical and mental stress on couples.
• Patients undergoing ARTs have substantial information and communication needs, often seeking information online.
• The myFertiCare eHealth tool was previously developed to offer personalized information and interactive features for infertile couples, aiming to enhance patient-centered care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantitatively evaluate the implementation of the myFertiCare app using the human, organizational, and technology-fit (HOT-fit) framework.
• To assess the impact of myFertiCare on couples' knowledge of infertility, their perceived burden of infertility, and their experience of patient-centered care.
• To identify areas for improvement in implementation and enhance patient-centered care through app usage.

Main Methods:

• A quantitative study employed the HOT-fit framework with validated questionnaires assessing human, organizational, and technology domains.
• Investigated the app's effect on couples' knowledge, burden of infertility, and patient-centeredness, using adapted FertiQoL and Patient-Centredness Questionnaire-Infertility items.
• Included non-users to understand non-adoption reasons and analyzed user data for insights into app engagement patterns.

Main Results:

• The myFertiCare app demonstrated good usability, high user satisfaction, and quality in human and technology domains.
• Implementation was deemed sufficient by both patients and staff in the organizational domain.
• App usage led to increased knowledge about infertility treatment, improved coping mechanisms, and enhanced patient-centered care experiences, though usage declined over time.

Conclusions:

• The myFertiCare app, an eHealth tool, was successfully implemented and quantitatively validated using the HOT-fit framework.
• The app demonstrably increased patient knowledge, improved coping strategies, and enhanced the experience of patient-centered care.
• Increased publicity for myFertiCare is suggested to improve adoption and support fertility care professionals in delivering patient-centered care.