Facilitators and barriers to the transition from outpatient clinic visits to home-based check-ups for children being treated with growth hormone: a mixed-methods study

Abstract

Although the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic accelerated the adoption and expansion of telemedicine worldwide, little is known about the transition to home-based care for children. This study aims to investigate the facilitators and barriers to the transition from outpatient clinic visits to home-based check-ups (HBCU), for children being treated with growth hormone. A mixed-methods study was performed at Amalia Children’s Hospital (Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen), consisting of questionnaires and semi-structured and focus group interviews. For the quantitative part, the Measurement Instrument for Determinants of Innovation (MIDI) was utilised to investigate the facilitators and barriers for the 81 participants regarding the transition to HBCU. The MIDI questionnaire is comprised of four domains: the innovation-, user-, organisation-, and the socio-political scale. Descriptive statistics were performed for analysing the questionnaires. For the qualitative part, interviews with 10 participants derived from the questionnaire and the two focus group interviews were conducted, to gain more in-depth information about the research topic, until data saturation was reached. The interviews were analysed by using the reflective thematic approach, starting with deductive coding and followed by inductive coding. Several facilitators were recognised in our study: procedural clarity, self-efficacy, convenience, patient-centred care, increased accuracy in height measurements, social support, client/patient satisfaction/cooperation, patient-centred care, the flexibility and adaptivity of HBCU, physical start-up period of HBCU, and a potential decrease in healthcare costs. However, several barriers were also noted in our study: poor compatibility with current practice, lack of consultation within the team, feeling of being less controlled by physicians, unsettledness of the organisation, an increased workload for the staff, and insufficient information communication technology (ICT) facilities.Conclusion: This study revealed that HBCU have considerable benefits for both patients and healthcare professionals, from the standpoint of innovation, user, and socio-political points of view. The identified facilitators and barriers to HBCU should be taken into account when further steps of implementing HBCU are considered.What is Known:• The Corona-Virus-Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had an immense impact on health care worldwide. A substantial amount of the outpatient clinic visits for children treated with growth hormone was, as a result of the pandemic, transferred to online consultation. Transitioning paediatric growth hormone treatment to the home setting may be favorable for children and their parents/caregivers) as well for healthcare professionals.• Insights regarding facilitators and barriers is vital for the successful implementation and adoption of home-care technologies.What is New:• To our knowledge, we are first to report on and explicit the facilitators and barriers of the transition to home-based check-ups, via online consultation for children being treated with growth hormone.• Both children and healthcare professionals reported major facilitators and some minor barriers to the transition to home-based check-ups, illustrating their potential value. These facilitators and barriers should be considered while working towards implementation of home-based check-ups.