Factors Affecting Customer Intention to Adopt a Mobile Chronic Disease Management Service

The Mobile Chronic Disease Management Service (MCDMS) is an emerging medical service for chronic disease prevention and treatment, but limited attention has been paid to the factors that affect users’ intention to adopt the service. Based on the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology 2 and the protection motivation theory, the authors built an MCDMS adoption model. The authors also verified the differentiating age effect on the service adoption intention from experiential distance perspective of the construal level theory. Empirical results showed that the young group focused more on the impact of effort expectancy, whereas the elderly group focused more on performance expectancy, imitating others, and perceived severity. Furthermore, the young group, however, focused more on the impact of perceived vulnerability, and offline medical habits showed no significant influence on either group’s intention to adopt, which were not consistent with the original hypotheses. The findings can aid MCDMS providers in selecting marketing strategies targeted toward different age groups.

Teaching a Man to Fish: An Evaluation of a Chronic Disease Management Men’s Cooking Class

There is limited data on the effects of cooking classes on male participants. The LiveWell Chronic Disease Management program’s Men’s Cooking Class (MCC) aims to help participants gain skills and confidence with food to manage chronic diseases more independently and improve their health. This paper evaluates whether, and how, the program is effective in achieving its goals. A qualitative process was used to collect data from past program participants. Data collection included telephone interviews conducted with a sample of 27 past MCC attendees and a focus group held with a subsample of seven participants. Thematic analysis was performed on collected data. Five major themes emerged, including (i) practical and applicable content, (ii) kinesthetic teaching and learning, (iii) catering to the interests of participants, (iv) tailoring to the demographic, and (v) enjoyment and engagement. Findings indicate the current LiveWell MCC program is effective in meeting its goals. The themes identified are aspects of the program that contribute to this effectiveness. The thematic findings indicate areas in which to continuously adapt and monitor the effectiveness of this program and serve as recommendations for other programming. Further research on the long-term impact of MCC for self-management of chronic disease is needed.

A Framework to Support the Progressive Implementation of Integrated Team-based Care for the Management of Copd: a Collective Case Study

Background: In Canada, there is widespread agreement about the need for integrated models of team-based care. However, there is less agreement on how to support the scale-up and spread of successful models; there is limited empirical evidence to support this process in chronic disease management. We studied the supporting, and mitigating factors required to successfully implement and scale-up an integrated model of team-based care in primary care.Methods: We conducted a collective case study using multiple methods of data collection including interviews, document analysis, living documents, and a focus group. Our study explored a team-based model of care for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) known as Best Care COPD (BCC) that has been implemented in primary care settings across Southwestern Ontario. BCC is a quality improvement initiative that was developed to enhance the quality of care for patients with COPD. Participants included healthcare providers involved in the delivery of the BCC program. Results: We identified several mechanisms influencing the scale-up and spread of BCC and categorized them as Foundational (e.g., evidence-based program, readiness to implement, peer-led implementation team), Transformative (adaptive process, empowerment and collaboration, embedded evaluation), and Enabling Mechanisms (provider training, administrative support, role clarity, patient outcomes). Based on these results, we developed a framework to inform the progressive implementation of integrated, team-based care for chronic disease management. Our framework builds off our empirical work and is framed by local contextual factors. Conclusions: This study explores the implementation and spread of integrated team-based care in a primary care setting. Despite the study’s focus on COPD, we believe the findings can be applied in other chronic disease contexts. We provide a framework to support the progressive implementation of integrated team-based care for chronic disease management.

Capitated versus fee-for-service reimbursement and quality of care for chronic disease: a US cross-sectional analysis

Background Upcoming alternative payment models Primary Care First (PCF) and Kidney Care Choices (KCC) incorporate capitated payments for chronic disease management. Prior research on the effect of capitated payments on chronic disease management has shown mixed results. We assessed the patient, physician, and practice characteristics of practices with capitation as the majority of revenue, and evaluated the association of capitated reimbursement with quality of chronic disease care. Methods We performed a cross-sectional analysis of visits in the United States’ National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) for patients with hypertension, diabetes, or chronic kidney disease (CKD). Our predictor was practice reimbursement type, classified as 1) majority capitation, 2) majority FFS, or 3) other reimbursement mix. Outcomes were quality indicators of hypertension control, diabetes control, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ACEi/ARB) use, and statin use. Results About 9% of visits were to practices with majority capitation revenue. Capitated practices, compared with FFS and other practices, had lower visit frequency (3.7 vs. 5.2 vs. 5.2, p = 0.006), were more likely to be located in the West Census Region (55% vs. 18% vs. 17%, p < 0.001), less likely to be solo practice (21% vs. 37% vs. 35%, p = 0.005), more likely to be owned by an insurance company, health plan or HMO (24% vs. 13% vs. 13%, p = 0.033), and more likely to have private insurance (43% vs. 25% vs. 19%, p = 0.004) and managed care payments (69% vs. 23% vs. 26%, p < 0.001) as the majority of revenue. The prevalence of controlled hypertension, controlled diabetes, ACEi/ARB use, and statin use was suboptimal across practice reimbursement types. Capitated reimbursement was not associated with differences in hypertension, diabetes, or CKD quality indicators, in multivariable models adjusting for patient, physician, and practice characteristics. Conclusions Practices with majority capitation revenue differed substantially from FFS and other practices in patient, physician, and practice characteristics, but were not associated with consistent quality differences. Our findings establish baseline estimates of chronic disease quality of care performance by practice reimbursement composition, informing chronic disease care delivery within upcoming payment models.

Patients’ and healthcare providers’ perceptions and experiences of telehealth use and online health information use in chronic disease management for older patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a qualitative study

Background Telehealth and online health information provide patients with increased access to healthcare services and health information in chronic disease management of older patients with chronic diseases, addressing the challenge of inadequate health resources and promoting active and informed participation of older patients in chronic disease management. There are few qualitative studies on the application of telehealth and online health information to chronic disease management in older patients. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is one of the most common chronic diseases in older adults. Telehealth is widely used in the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions and experiences of older patients and healthcare providers in the application of telehealth and online health information to chronic disease management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Methods A qualitative descriptive study with data generated from 52 individual semi-structured interviews with 29 patients [Law of the People’s Republic of China on the protection of the rights and interests of older people (2018 Revised Version) = >60 years old] with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and 23 healthcare providers. The inductive thematic analysis method was used for data analysis. Results Four themes and 16 sub-themes were identified in this study. Four themes included: faced with a vast amount of online health information, essential competencies and personality traits ensuring older patients’ participation and sustained use, user experience with the use of technology, being in a complex social context. Conclusion The ability of patients to understand health information should be fully considered while facilitating access to online health information for older patients. The role of health responsibility and user experience in older patients’ participation and sustained use of telehealth and online health information needs to be emphasised. In addition, the complex social context is a determining factor to be considered, particularly the complex impact of a reliance on offspring and social prejudice on the behaviour of older adults using telehealth and online health information.

Toward digital transformation in healthcare: a framework for remote monitoring adoption

PurposeDigital transformation (DT) is a priority for the healthcare sector. In many countries, it is still considered in the early stages with an underestimation of its benefits and potentiality. Especially in Italy, little is known about the impact of digitalization – particularly of the Internet of Things (IoT) – on the healthcare sector, for example, in terms of clinician's jobs and patient's experience. Drawing from such premises, the paper aims to focus on an overlooked healthcare area related to the chronic heart diseases field and its relationship with DT. The authors aim at exploring and framing the main variables of remote Monitoring (RM) adoption as a specific archetype of healthcare digitalization, both on patients and medical staff level, by shedding some lights on its overall implementation.Design/methodology/approachThe authors empirically inquiry the RM adoption within the context of the Cardiology Department of the Casilino General Hospital of Rome. To answer our research question, the authors reconstruct the salient information by using induction-type reasoning, direct observation and interviewees with 12 key informants, as well as secondary sources analysis related to the hospital (internal documentation, presentations and technical reports).FindingsAccording to a socio-technical framework, the authors build a model composed of five main variables related to medical staff and patients. The authors classify such variables into an input-process-output (I-P-O) model. RM adoption driver represents the input; cultural digital divide, structure flexibility and reaction to change serve the process and finally, RM outcome stands for the output. All these factors, interacting together, contribute to understanding the RM adoption process for chronic disease management.Research limitations/implicationsThe authors' research presents two main limitations. The first one is related to using a qualitative method, which is less reliable in terms of replication and the interpretive role of researchers. The second limitation, connected to the first one, is related to the study's scale level, which focuses on a mono-centric consistent level of analysis.Practical implicationsThe paper offers a clear understanding of the RM attributes and a comprehensive view for improving the overall quality management of chronic diseases by suggesting that clinicians carefully evaluate both hard and soft variables when undertaking RM adoption decisions.Social implicationsRM technologies could impact on society both in ordinary situations, by preventing patient mobility issues and transport costs, and in extraordinary times (such as a pandemic), where telemedicine contributes to supporting hospitals in swapping in-person visits with remote controls, in order to minimize the risk of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) contagion or the spread of the virus.Originality/valueThe study enriches the knowledge and understanding of RM adoption within the healthcare sector. From a theoretical perspective, the authors contribute to the healthcare DT adoption debate by focusing on the main variables contributing to the DT process by considering both medical staff and patient's role. From a managerial perspective, the authors highlight the main issues for RM of chronic disease management to enable the transition toward its adoption. Such issues range from the need for awareness of the medical staff about RM advantages to the need for adapting the organizational structure and the training and education process of the patients.

The Effect of Chronic Disease Management on the Treat-to-Target of Gout: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: The treat-to-target (T2T) strategy is essential for patients with gout. However, the rate of T2T is low. This study aimed to explore doctor-led chronic disease management on the T2T of gout, survey the rate of T2T and assess the predictors associated with poor control of serum urate levels (SUA) in a large population of patients with gout receiving urate-lowering treatment (ULT). Methods: A multi-center, cross-sectional study was conducted. We surveyed the relevant information of outpatients who received ULT for more than six months using electronic questionnaires, including demographics, disease-related conditions, comorbid conditions, and management. The patients with gout were divided into the SUA > 360 µmol/L and ≤ 360 µmol/L, and the patient characteristics between the two groups were compared. We analyzed the predictors of SUA > 360 µmol/L and poor disease control.Results: We collected 425 (90.8% of the patients) valid questionnaires. There were significant differences in the gender, education level, regular visits, medication adherence, diabetes, economic burden and community doctor's help between the SUA > 360 µmol/L (n=311, 73.18%) and ≤ 360 µmol/L (n=114, 26.82%) groups. The predictors of SUA >360 µmol/L were general medication adherence (OR=2.35; 95% CI 1.17–4.77; p=0.016), poor medication adherence (OR=4.63; 95% CI 2.28–9.51; p<0.001) and community doctor’s help (OR=0.60; 95% CI 0.37–0.97; p=0.036 for full model, OR=0.58; 95% CI 0.36–0.93; p=0.023 for simplified model). There were significant differences in the gender, regular visits, medication adherence, gout popular science, established health files, and community doctor’s help between the not well controlled (n=361, 84.94%) and well controlled (n=61, 14.35%) groups. The predictors of not well controlled were Tophi (OR=2.48; 95% CI 1.17–5.61; p=0.023), general medication adherence (OR=2.78; 95% CI 1.28–6.05; p=0.009), poor medication adherence (OR=6.23; 95% CI 2.68–14.77; p<0.001) and no gout popular science (OR=4.07; 95% CI 1.41–13.91; p=0.015).Conclusion: The T2T and well controlled rates were very low. The medication adherence, the community doctor’s help and gout popular science which was the doctor-led chronic gout management should be further improved to increase the T2T and well controlled rate.Trial registration: ChiCTR, ChiCTR2000034700, Registered 15 July 2020. http://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj=55778