By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Physician Law Weekly -- Researchers detail new data in Internet and World Wide Web - Medical Internet Research. According to news reporting out of Guayaquil, Ecuador, by NewsRx editors, research stated, “The instantaneous spread of information, low costs, and broad availability of information and communication technologies (ICTs) make them an attractive platform for managing care, patient communication, and medical interventions in cancer treatment. There is little information available in Latin America about the level of usage of ICTs for and by cancer patients.”
Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research, “Our study attempts to fill this gap. The aim of this study was to assess the level of ICT use and patterns of preferences among cancer patients. We conducted an anonymous cross-sectional survey study in 500 Ecuadorian cancer patients. This questionnaire consisted of 22 items about demographic and clinical data, together with the preferences of people who use ICTs. Chi-square, crude, and adjusted logistic regressions were performed. Of the total, 43.2% (216/500) of participants reported that they had access to the Internet, and 25.4% (127/500) reported that they neither owned a cell phone nor did they have access to the Internet. The Internet constituted the highest usage rate as a source of information about malignant diseases (74.3%, 162/218) regardless of age (P <.001). With regard to the preferences on how patients would like to use ICTs to receive information about diseases, WhatsApp (66.5%, 145/218) and short message service (SMS) text messaging (61.0%, 133/218) were widely reported as interesting communication channels. Similarly, WhatsApp (72.0%, 157/218) followed by SMS (63.8%, 139/218) were reported as the preferred ICTs through which patients would like to ask physicians about diseases. Adjusted regression analysis showed that patients aged between 40 and 64 years were more likely to be interested in receiving information through SMS (odds ratio, OR 5.09, 95% CI 1.92-13.32), as well as for asking questions to physicians through this same media (OR 9.78, CI 3.45-27.67) than the oldest group. WhatsApp, SMS, and email are effective and widely used ICTs that can promote communication between cancer patients and physicians. According to age range, new ICTs such as Facebook are still emerging. Future studies should investigate how to develop and promote ICT-based resources more effectively to engage the outcomes of cancer patients.”
According to the news editors, the research concluded: “The widespread use of ICTs narrows the gap between cancer patients with restricted socioeconomic conditions and those with wealth and easily available technological means, thereby opening up new possibilities in low-income countries.”
For more information on this research see: Ecuadorian Cancer Patients’ Preference for Information and Communication Technologies: Cross-Sectional Study. Journal of Medical Internet Research , 2018;20(2):76-88. Journal of Medical Internet Research can be contacted at: Jmir Publications, Inc, 59 Winners Circle, Toronto, On M4L 3Y7, Canada.
Our news journalists report that additional information may be obtained by contacting I.C. Ojeda, Respiralab Res Grp, Guayaquil, Ecuador. Additional authors for this research include E. Vanegas, M. Torres, J.C. Calderon, E. Calero, A. Cherrez, M. Felix, V. Mata, S. Cherrez and D. Simancas.
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CITATION: (2018-04-25), Findings from I.C. Ojeda and Co-Authors Provide New Insights into Medical Internet Research (Ecuadorian Cancer Patients’ Preference for Information and Communication Technologies: Cross-Sectional Study), Physician Law Weekly, 172, ISSN: 1551-5303, BUTTER® ID: 015527053
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