A European survey of older peoples' preferences, and perceived barriers and facilitators to inform development of a medication-related fall-prevention patient portal.
Eur Geriatr Med
; 15(3): 817-829, 2024 Jun.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38587614
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE:
Falls are a major and growing health care problem in older adults. A patient portal has the potential to provide older adults with fall-prevention advice to reduce fall-risk. However, to date, the needs and preferences regarding a patient portal in older people who have experienced falls have not been explored. This study assesses content preferences, potential barriers and facilitators with regard to using a patient portal, as perceived by older people who have experienced falls, and explores regional differences between European participants.METHODS:
We conducted a survey of older adults attending an outpatient clinic due to a fall or fall-related injury, to explore their content preferences, perceived barriers, and facilitators with respect to a fall-prevention patient portal. Older adults (N = 121, 69.4% female, mean age 77.9) were recruited from seven European countries.RESULTS:
Almost two-thirds of respondents indicated they would use a fall-prevention patient portal. The portal would preferably include information on Fall-Risk-Increasing Drugs (FRIDs), and ways to manage other related/relevant medical conditions. Facilitators included a user-friendly portal, with easily accessible information and physician recommendations to use the portal. The most-commonly-selected barriers were privacy issues and usage fees. A family member's recommendation to use the portal was seemingly more important for Southern and Eastern European participants compared to the other regions.CONCLUSION:
The majority of older people with lived falls experience expressed an interest in a fall-prevention patient portal providing personalized treatment advice to prevent further falls. The results will be used to inform the development of a fall-prevention patient portal. The fall-prevention patient portal is intended to be used in addition to a consultation with a physician. Future research is needed to explore how to prevent falls in older patients who are not interested in a fall-prevention patient portal.Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Accidental Falls
/
Patient Preference
/
Patient Portals
Limits:
Aged
/
Aged80
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
En
Journal:
Eur Geriatr Med
/
European geriatric medicine (Online)
Year:
2024
Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Netherlands