This study aims to explore patients' use of digital services for self-management of their health following major surgery at Jessa Hospital. Besides this, the study evaluates patients' ability to process and critically assess health information during recovery, their understanding of health concepts and risk factors, and their perception of data security and control over personal health information. Additionally, the study aims to examine patients' motivation to use digital services, their access to and trust in reliable digital health resources, and how well these services meet their individual needs. Furthermore, the study assesses the acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of using digital health tools in a post-operative setting, as well as evaluating the digital readiness of patients after surgery.
Digital health technologies are transforming healthcare, offering new ways to improve patient outcomes and enhance efficiency. Remote clinical monitoring (RCM), which uses digital technologies such as wearable devices and mobile apps to monitor patients outside of the traditional healthcare settings such as a hospital, holds significant potential for supporting post-operative care, especially in the context of faster hospital discharge after major surgery. Major surgery involves procedures on organ systems, such as cancer resections, organ transplants, and lung or abdominal surgeries. However, despite their promise, the successful implementation of these technologies into clinical practice requires a thorough understanding of the perspectives of the end user, being the patient. Patients' comfort, engagement, and perceptions about digital health solutions, such as self-management tools and remote monitoring pathways, are essential to ensuring these technologies are both effective and widely accepted.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
NA
Purpose
SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
220
Several questionnaires will be conducted once in-person to each patient after a follow-up consultation in the hospital after their major surgery
Jessa Hospital
Hasselt, Limburg, Belgium
RECRUITINGPatients' understanding of comfort and engagement with using digital services for self- management of their disease
The patients' understanding of comfort and engagement with using digital services for self- management of their disease after major surgery will be evaluated using scale 4 of the eHLQ.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
Ability of patients to use technology to process and critically evaluate health information
The ability of patients to use technology to process and critically evaluate health information during postoperative recovery will be evaluated using scale 1 of the eHLQ.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
Patients' understanding of health concepts, their health status, and risk factors
Scale 2 of the eHLQ will assess patients' understanding of health concepts, their health status, and risk factors during their recovery period.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
Patients' perception of data security and control over personal health data
To assess patients' perception of data security and control over personal health data in digital services, scale 4 of the eHLQ will be used.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
Patients' motivation to use digital services for managing postoperative health
Scale 5 of the eHLQ is used to examine patients' motivation to use digital services for managing their postoperative health.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
Patients' access to and trust in reliable digital health services
The sixth scale of the eHLQ will evaluate patients' access to and trust in reliable digital health services during recovery.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
The extent to which digital health services meet patients' individual needs and preferences
To assess how well digital health services meet patients' individual needs and preferences during recovery, scale 7 of the eHLQ will be used.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
Acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of using digital health by means of implementation outcome measures AIM, IAM, and FIM
To evaluate the acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of using digital health in a postoperative setting after major surgery, the AIM, IAM, and FIM, respectively, will be used.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
Digital readiness
The DHRQ will be used to assess digital readiness of patients that underwent major surgery.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
External validation of the digital health readiness questionnaire
The DHRQ will be externally validated against the extensively validated eHLQ.
Time frame: During a follow-up consultation within one year after major surgery
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