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Improving patient health engagement with mobile texting: A pilot study in the head and neck postoperative setting
Author(s) -
Sosa Alan,
Heineman Nathan,
Thomas Kimberly,
Tang Kai,
Feinstein Marie,
Martin Michelle Y.,
Sumer Baran,
Schwartz David L.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
head and neck
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.012
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1097-0347
pISSN - 1043-3074
DOI - 10.1002/hed.24718
Subject(s) - medicine , likert scale , text messaging , psychological intervention , intervention (counseling) , mhealth , head and neck cancer , patient satisfaction , physical therapy , mobile phone , medical emergency , surgery , nursing , cancer , world wide web , psychology , computer science , telecommunications , developmental psychology
Background Cell phone ownership is nearly universal. Messaging is one of its most widely used features. Texting‐based interventions may improve patient engagement in the postoperative setting, but remain understudied. Methods Patients were recruited before discharge from the hospital and received automated daily texts for 1 week providing information about expected recovery. Patients were encouraged to text questions to providers, which were triaged for intervention. Web‐based surveys solicited patient feedback about the platform. Results Thirty‐two patients were approached, and 23 patients (72%) were enrolled in the study. All study patients texted their providers, although frequency (median, 7 texts; range, 2–44 texts) varied. Unmarried patients and those facing surgical complications used the platform more frequently. Mean patient satisfaction with the platform was high (mean, 3.8 on a 4‐point Likert scale). Conclusion Text messaging seems feasible in the acute postoperative setting and potentially improves engagement of patients with head and neck cancer. Further study is warranted to confirm scalability and impact. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 39: 988–995, 2017