Dataset Information

Using mHealth for HIV/TB Treatment Support in Lesotho: Enhancing Patient-Provider Communication in the START Study.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:mHealth is a promising means of supporting adherence to treatment. The Start TB patients on ART and Retain on Treatment (START) study included real-time adherence support using short-text messaging service (SMS) text messaging and trained village health workers (VHWs). We describe the use and acceptability of mHealth by patients with HIV/tuberculosis and health care providers. METHODS:Patients and treatment supporters received automated, coded medication and appointment reminders at their preferred time and frequency, using their own phones, and $3.70 in monthly airtime. Facility-based VHWs were trained to log patient information and text message preferences into a mobile application and were given a password-protected mobile phone and airtime to communicate with community-based VHWs. The use of mHealth tools was analyzed from process data over the study course. Acceptability was evaluated during monthly follow-up interviews with all participants and during qualitative interviews with a subset of 30 patients and 30 health care providers at intervention sites. Use and acceptability were contextualized by monthly adherence data. FINDINGS:From April 2013 to August 2015, the automated SMS system successfully delivered 39,528 messages to 835 individuals, including 633 patients and 202 treatment supporters. Uptake of the SMS intervention was high, with 92.1% of 713 eligible patients choosing to receive SMS messages. Patient and provider interviews yielded insight into barriers and facilitators to mHealth utilization. The intervention improved the quality of health communication between patients, treatment supporters, and providers. HIV-related stigma and technical challenges were identified as potential barriers. CONCLUSIONS:The mHealth intervention for HIV/tuberculosis treatment support in Lesotho was found to be a low-tech, user-friendly intervention, which was acceptable to patients and health care providers.

SUBMITTER: Hirsch-Moverman Y

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5147041 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Using mHealth for HIV/TB Treatment Support in Lesotho: Enhancing Patient-Provider Communication in the START Study.

Hirsch-Moverman Yael Y Daftary Amrita A Yuengling Katharine A KA Saito Suzue S Ntoane Moeketsi M Frederix Koen K Maama Llang B LB Howard Andrea A AA

Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999) 20170101

<h4>Background</h4>mHealth is a promising means of supporting adherence to treatment. The Start TB patients on ART and Retain on Treatment (START) study included real-time adherence support using short-text messaging service (SMS) text messaging and trained village health workers (VHWs). We describe the use and acceptability of mHealth by patients with HIV/tuberculosis and health care providers.<h4>Methods</h4>Patients and treatment supporters received automated, coded medication and appointment ...[more]

PMID: 27930610

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Project description:BackgroundThis study investigates patient-centered mobile health (mHealth) technology in terms of the secondary user experience (UX). Specifically, it examines how personal mobile technology, under patient control, can be used to improve patient-provider communication about the patient's health care during their first visit to a provider. Common ground, a theory about language use, is used as the theoretical basis to examine interactions. A novel concept of this study is that it is one of the first empirical studies to explore the relative meaningfulness of a secondary UX for specific health care tasks.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to investigate the extent that patient-operated mHealth technology can be designed to improve the communication between the patient and provider during an initial face-to-face encounter.MethodsThe experimental study was conducted in 2 large Midwestern cities from February 2016 to May 2016. A custom-designed smartphone app prototype was used as the study treatment. The experimental design was posttest-only control group and included video-recorded simulated face-to-face clinical encounters in which an actor role-played a patient. Experienced clinicians consisting of doctors (n=4) and nurses (n=8) were the study participants. A thematic analysis of qualitative data was performed. Quantitative data collected from time on task measurements were analyzed using descriptive statistics.ResultsThree themes that represent how grounding manifested during the encounter, what it meant for communication during the encounter, and how it influenced the provider's perception of the patient emerged from the qualitative analysis. The descriptive statistics were important for inferring evidence of efficiency and effectiveness of communication for providers. Overall, encounter and task times averaged slightly faster in almost every instance for the treatment group than that in the control group. Common ground clearly was better in the treatment group, indicating that the idea of designing for the secondary UX to improve provider outcomes has merit.ConclusionsCombining the notions of common ground, human-computer interaction design, and smartphone technology resulted in a prototype that improved the efficiency and effectiveness of face-to-face collaboration for secondary users. The experimental study is one of the first studies to demonstrate that an investment in the secondary UX for high payoff tasks has value but that not all secondary UXs are meaningful for design. This observation is useful for prioritizing how resources should be applied when considering the secondary UX.

Project description:BackgroundEfforts to reduce opioid overdose fatalities have resulted in tapering (i.e., reducing or discontinuing) opioid prescriptions despite a limited understanding of patients' experiences.ObjectiveTo explore patients' perspectives on opioid taper experiences to ultimately improve taper processes and outcomes.DesignQualitative study.ParticipantsPatients on long-term opioid therapy for chronic pain who had undergone a reduction of opioid daily prescribed dosage of ≥50% in the past 2 years in two distinct medical systems and regions.ApproachFrom 2019 to 2020, we conducted semi-structured interviews that were audio-recorded, transcribed, systematically coded, and analyzed to summarize the content and identify key themes regarding taper experiences overall and with particular attention to patient-provider relationships and provider communication during tapers.Key resultsParticipants (n=41) had lived with chronic pain for an average of 17.4 years (range, 3-36 years) and described generally adverse experiences with opioid tapers, the initiation of which was not always adequately justified or explained to them. Consequences of tapers ranged from minor to substantial and included withdrawal, mobility issues, emotional distress, exacerbated mental health symptoms, and feelings of social stigmatization for which adequate supports were typically unavailable. Narratives highlighted the consequential role of patient-provider relationships throughout taper experiences, with most participants describing significant interpersonal challenges including poor provider communication and limited patient engagement in decision making. A few participants identified qualities of providers, relationships, and communication that fostered more positive taper experiences and outcomes.ConclusionsFrom patients' perspectives, opioid tapers can produce significant physical, emotional, and social consequences, sometimes reducing trust and engagement in healthcare. Patient-provider relationships and communication influence patients' perceptions of the quality and outcomes of opioid tapers. To improve patients' experiences of opioid tapers, tapering plans should be based on individualized risk-benefit assessments and involve patient-centered approaches and improved provider communication.

Project description:Disclosure of HIV-positive status has important implications for patient outcomes and preventing HIV transmission, but has been understudied in TB-HIV patients. We assessed disclosure patterns and correlates of non-disclosure among adult TB-HIV patients initiating ART enrolled in the START Study, a mixed-methods cluster-randomized trial conducted in Lesotho, which evaluated a combination intervention package (CIP) versus standard of care. Interviewer-administered questionnaire data were analyzed to describe patterns of disclosure. Patient-related factors were assessed for association with non-disclosure to anyone other than a health-care provider and primary partners using generalized linear mixed models. Among 371 participants, 95% had disclosed their HIV diagnosis to someone other than a health-care provider, most commonly a spouse/primary partner (76%). Age, TB knowledge, not planning to disclose TB status, greater perceived TB stigma, and CIP were associated with non-disclosure in unadjusted models (p < .1). In adjusted models, all point estimates were similar and greater TB knowledge (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.59, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.39-0.90) and CIP (aOR 0.20, 95% CI 0.05-0.79) remained statistically significant. Among 220 participants with a primary partner, 76% had disclosed to that partner. Significant correlates of partner non-disclosure (p < .1) in unadjusted analyses included being female, married/cohabitating, electricity at home, not knowing if partner was HIV-positive, and TB knowledge. Adjusted point estimates were largely similar, and being married/cohabitating (aOR 0.03, 95% CI 0.01-0.12), having electricity at home (aOR 0.38, 95% CI 0.17-0.85) and greater TB knowledge (aOR 0.76, 95% CI 0.59-0.98) remained significant. In conclusion, although nearly all participants reported disclosing their HIV status to someone other than a health-care provider at ART initiation, nearly a quarter of participants with a primary partner had not disclosed to their partner. Additional efforts to support HIV disclosure (e.g., counseling) may be needed for TB-HIV patients, particularly for women and those unaware of their partners' status.

Dataset Information

Using mHealth for HIV/TB Treatment Support in Lesotho: Enhancing Patient-Provider Communication in the START Study.

Publications

Using mHealth for HIV/TB Treatment Support in Lesotho: Enhancing Patient-Provider Communication in the START Study.

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