Downloaded from http://journals.lww.com/homehealthcarenurseonline by BhDMf5ePHKbH4TTImqenVHHw8h8Dt9kevoTXbMSZWXGe/R9Mv1sPk9bjOMs/18UA on 12/08/2019
Joshua Nyirenda, PhD, MPA, Cynthia Sun, MSN, Shanen Wright, BA, and Gary Rezek, BS
FEASIBILITY TESTING OF HEALTH
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Enabled Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement
in the Home Health Setting
Wavebreak Images / Media Bakery
The use of Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) to improve patient outcomes, communication, and
shared decision-making is of significance to home healthcare. Clinicians have begun to integrate health infor-
mation technology (HIT) enabled PROM platforms (such as tablets) into routine care to facilitate collection of
PROMs. To evaluate the feasibility and suitability of incorporating PROMs into the overall workflow in home
healthcare, and integrating data collected with electronic health records (EHRs), we engaged two home health-
care agencies as pilot sites over the course of 4 months. We provided tablets enabled with an app version of
the validated Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System to collect patient data. This was
followed by surveys, interviews, and observations on aspects of feasibility, which we analyzed using summary
statistics and qualitative analysis. Results show that the implementation of the HIT-enabled PROMs in the
home healthcare setting is suitable for workflow, without negatively impacting goals of care. Additionally, the
tablets were considered user-friendly by both clinicians and patients. Key to the utility of HIT-enabled PROMs
in home healthcare is the integration of the data collected with existing data systems, in order to facilitate
quality and improve outcomes, the success of which can depend on EHR platform ownership and the related
ability or access to modify EHRs.
222 Volume 37 | Number 4 www.homehealthcarenow.org
Copyright © 2019 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.