Abstract
BackgroundPatient-centered care—that is, care tailored to personal wishes and needs of patients—has become increasingly important. It is especially relevant in health care areas where patients suffer from a high burden of disease, such as fertility care. At present, both diagnosis and treatment for infertile couples is provided at a single hospital. As a consequence, patients are not likely to receive optimal, independent advice regarding their fertility problems. Internet-based, independent advice could be feasible for large groups of patients because it is not limited by travel distance and overhead costs.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to explore the experiences of both patients and professionals with an online platform using video consultations for patients with infertility seeking independent advice for their fertility problem.MethodsThis pilot study evaluated an online platform, Fertility Consult, where patients with infertility can get independent advice by a gynecologist through a video consultation, thus eliminating the need of meeting the doctor physically. Semistructured interviews were performed with 2 gynecologists and the chairman of the Dutch patients association. This information was used for a patients’ questionnaire about their first experiences with Fertility Consult, including questions about the level of patient-centeredness and shared decision making, using the Patient-Centered Questionnaire-Infertility (PCQ-Infertility) and the CollaboRATE questionnaire, respectively.ResultsOf the first 27 patients enrolled at Fertility Consult, 22 responded (82%). Most patients (82%) visited Fertility Consult for a second opinion, seeking more personal attention and independent advice. The mean level of patient-centeredness on the PCQ-Infertility questionnaire was 2.78 (SD 0.58) on a scale of 0 to 3. For the CollaboRATE questionnaire (scale 0-9), patients provided a median score of 8.0 (range 7-9) on all 3 questions about shared decision making.ConclusionsPatients were satisfied with independent, well-prepared, Web-based advice; health care professionals felt they were able to provide patients with proper advice in a manner befitting patients’ needs, without any loss of quality. Future studies should focus more on the separation of advice and treatment and on Web-based consultations compared with face-to-face consultations to ascertain the possibility of increased patient involvement in the process to improve the level of patient-centered care.
Highlights
In consulting rooms, health care professionals strive for a good relationship with their patients and want to provide them with the most optimal, person-centered advice and corresponding treatment
To gather more in-depth information about the level of patient-centeredness and shared decision making patients experienced at Fertility Consult, we extended our questionnaire with questions of the PCQ-Infertility and the CollaboRATE questionnaire
Because it is the first time that patient and gynecologist see each other, the nonverbal communication of a video consultation is considered of additional value when comparing it with a consultation by telephone
Summary
Health care professionals strive for a good relationship with their patients and want to provide them with the most optimal, person-centered advice and corresponding treatment. Patient-centered care—that is, care tailored to personal wishes and needs of patients—has become increasingly important It is especially relevant in health care areas where patients suffer from a high burden of disease, such as fertility care. Semistructured interviews were performed with 2 gynecologists and the chairman of the Dutch patients association This information was used for a patients’ questionnaire about their first experiences with Fertility Consult, including questions about the level of patient-centeredness and shared decision making, using the Patient-Centered Questionnaire-Infertility (PCQ-Infertility) and the CollaboRATE questionnaire, respectively. Future studies should focus more on the separation of advice and treatment and on Web-based consultations compared with face-to-face consultations to ascertain the possibility of increased patient involvement in the process to improve the level of patient-centered care
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