Barriers and Enablers of Electronic Health Literacy in Colorectal Cancer Patients: A Phenomenological Study

The real experience of patients with colorectal cancer in their electronic health (eHealth) practice was investigated to provide recommendations for the formulation of eHealth literacy improvement-oriented interventions in clinical settings.

A descriptive phenomenological study using Colaizzi's analysis was conducted. Through purposive maximum variation sampling until data saturation, semi-structured interviews were performed with 14 colorectal cancer patients at a tertiary hospital in Taizhou, China. Data were analyzed following Colaizzi's seven-step method with NVivo 12 qualitative data analysis software (NVivo 12.0). Trustworthiness was ensured via member checking, peer debriefing, and an audit trail.

The following three themes and eight sub-themes were identified: patient personal factors (education level and age, patient illness denial, and willingness to search online for health information), social support factors (double-edged family support and positive effect of support from healthcare professionals), and information carriers and information quality (insufficient knowledge of available helpful information carriers, acceptance and evaluation of information carriers, and questionable information content quality).

Patients with colorectal cancer's eHealth literacy is hindered by low willingness and ability to seek information. Healthcare professionals should motivate patients with colorectal cancer to actively seek information related to their disease; develop a healthcare provider-family-patient coordinated support system; and develop an information platform specifically focusing on patients with colorectal cancer. These integrated interventions at the individual, family, clinical, and systemic levels can collectively improve eHealth literacy and health outcomes.