N28 Satisfaction with telemedicine programs in inflammatory bowel disease: a natiowise multicenter study

Abstract

Abstract Background The novelty of using telemedicine systems with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients represents a new point of view of care delivery. However, different factors such as the acceptance and access to telematic means, the digital literacy of the population and health professionals, as well as other objective and subjective factors in their use must be weighed in order to implement this type of programs. Thus, we propose a multicenter study in different IBD units of Spanish centers with availability of telemedicine programs for clinical follow-up and/or determination of fecal calprotectin at home. Methods Cross-sectional observational study. IBD monographic units around national territory with available telemedicine programs were contacted. They were requested to answer to specific questionnaires by professionals (10 questions) and by patients (18 questions), all of them compound by closed-ended questions with a 5-item Likert scale and short answer questions. The closed-ended questions underwent quantitative analysis, while the short answer questions underwent qualitative analysis using the SWOT method. Results To abstract date, 18 IBD units joined to the study, including 21 health professionals and 44 patients. The mean score for the closed-ended questions was 26.45 ± 7.32 out of 40 points for health professionals (6.6/10) and 52.67 ± 23.54 out of 72 points for patients (7.3/10). The SWOT analysis identified as weaknesses: lack of integration with the computer system of the centers; threats: low perceived usefulness, flaws in the design of the application; and strengths: free telematic system and fecal calprotectin collection kits, reduction of visits to the healthcare center, simple collection method and analysis of fecal calprotectin at home. Conclusion The development of telemedicine systems in IBD units in our country is still limited. Users, patients and professionals, perceive some problems in its use that lead to its underuse and abandonment. Implementing improvement measures represents an opportunity to increase their acceptance and to incorporate this kind of programs into daily practice.