Patient-reported outcomes in clinical HIV care: protocol for a single-centre, multistage, mixed-methods study in...

Area of Science:

• HIV/AIDS Research
• Patient-Reported Outcomes (PROs)
• Health Services Research

Background:

• People with HIV-1 (PWH) experience diminished health-related quality of life (HRQoL).
• Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) offer a means to improve focus on HRQoL in HIV care.
• Developing and implementing PROs is crucial for enhancing patient-centered HIV management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop, implement, and evaluate the use of PROs in HIV care.
• To identify relevant PRO domains and assess barriers/benefits of PRO use.
• To evaluate the impact of PRO use on healthcare provider (HCP) awareness and documentation.

Main Methods:

• A mixed-methods study involving qualitative (focus groups, interviews) and quantitative (surveys, before-and-after analysis) substudies.
• Development of a patient-reported outcome measure (PROM) based on qualitative findings.
• Assessment of PWH willingness to engage with PROs and HCP awareness of PRO results.

Main Results:

• Qualitative data informed the design of a PROM.
• Quantitative data assessed PWH engagement with PROMs.
• Analysis compared HCP documentation rates before and after PRO implementation.

Conclusions:

• PROs hold potential for reorienting HIV care towards improving HRQoL.
• The study provides insights into the development and implementation of PROs in HIV settings.
• Further research can build upon these findings to optimize PRO integration in clinical practice.