Abstract
Available evidence suggests that digital health solutions have the potential to improve care provision for older people with multiple chronic conditions (multimorbidity). Successful implementation of digital health solutions within ecosystems of health care requires an in-depth understanding of users’ needs and clear assessment of the factors that may facilitate the adoption and sustained use of a solution as part of an effective model of coordinated care. In this paper we present the results from a qualitative investigation aimed at testing the transferability of an ICT-based solution for integrated care (the ProACT system), optimised for older people with multimorbidity. In total, 15 participants grouped into three different use-case scenarios were given the possibility to use the ProACT system in their living environments (i.e. private homes, sheltered apartments) for one month. Follow-up focus groups were conducted to assess the participants’ experience with the system. Thematic analysis of the focus group transcripts was conducted to identify factors that influence the usability, acceptability and perceived affordability (accessibility) of ProACT in different use contexts. From this analysis, four main factors related to context, user, intervention and technology were identified as potentially influencing adoption and use of ProACT on a daily basis. In addition, 12 sub-themes were identified as providing a comprehensive overview of the users’ views on the tested system. Overall, the results from this qualitative investigation point to the need to consider technical as well as psychological factors to ensure that digital health-based solutions are accepted by their end users and are perceived as useful.
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Acknowledgements
This study was conducted as part of the EU-funded Horizon 2020 project ProACT (Integrated Technology Systems for ProACTive Patient-Centred Care). We declare that the study and the findings here reported reflect the authors’ view only and that the Union is not liable for any use that may be made of the information contained herein.
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This study was in part conducted within the EU-funded Horizon 2020 project ProACT (Integrated Technology Systems for ProACTive Patient-Centred Care).
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Malavasi, M., Cesario, L., Fiordelmondo, V. et al. Validation of an IoT-based home system for integrated care services: a qualitative investigation involving older adults with multiple chronic health conditions. J Ambient Intell Human Comput 15, 2779–2794 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12652-023-04677-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12652-023-04677-8