ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: As more complex surgery is performed in 1-day admissions there is a growing demand for appropriate postoperative follow-up. A digital patient portal (DPP) is a promising tool to support this and increase patients' quality of recovery. However, both patients and health care professionals have not fully embraced this eHealth technology. This study investigates the extent to which a patient portal is used in a tertiary ambulatory surgical care unit and assesses usability, applicability and user-friendliness both for the patient and health care worker. DESIGN: Mixed method research design combining qualitative and quantitative methods. METHODS: Four hundred and fifteen patients undergoing knee arthroscopic surgery or endonasal sinus surgery were included. Quantitative log data from the patient platform, clinical outcome measures and a patient questionnaire were used. Additionally, qualitative data was collected through interviews (with patients, n = 13; involved caregivers and physicians, n = 7) and observations (first introduction to patient with platform and team meetings, n = 15). FINDINGS: Forty percent of the included patients effectively used the patient platform (≥1 login). The patients mainly used the platform for gathering information; 62% of the active patients on the platform registered questionnaires initiated from the surgery center (eg, preoperative questionnaire) or diaries (e.g, daily follow-up using the Quality of Recovery Scale). Different barriers and facilitators toward DPP implementation were noted. Attention should be paid to the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation for using the portal and to the added value of the portal for the patient and health care professionals. CONCLUSIONS: Patients' perceptions of the DPP were positive and an increase in DPP use was observed during the study due to adjustments (eg, technical adjustments). However, a decline over time was noticed. The role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation of all included parties needs to be further corroborated.