The use of online self-management diaries for asthma and COPD: A qualitative study of patient and professional perceptions and behaviors.

BACKGROUND: Online self-management diaries are used to support patients’ self-managementskills and facilitate associated behavioral changes. Although web-based diaries are well-known as apotential self-management tool, reasons that patients use (or do not use) self-management diaries,as well as perceptions and behaviors related to diary use, remain largely unknown.
METHODS:Semistructured interviews (n = 30) were conducted with health-care professionals and subjects tounderstand perceptions and behaviors related to self-management diary use for asthma and COPDin 2 hospitals in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
RESULTS: Subjects in this study used self-manage-ment diaries to improve their knowledge of the disease, cope more consciously with their disease,feel in control, and discuss outcomes from the self-management diaries with their health-careprofessionals. Two subjects reported that they used the self-management diary to cope more effec-tively with their disease and recognized an exacerbation and acted by adjusting their medications.Both health-care professionals and subjects experienced practical barriers in integrating self-man-agement diaries into their regular practices. Subjects’ reasons for nonuse were related to theintervention, the disease, and subject-provider contact.
CONCLUSIONS: Health-care professionalsshould help patients use self-management diaries by collaboratively developing an individual treat-ment plan and by showing patients how to use the diaries to recognize and act on an exacerbation.Together with the suggestions made for improving the self-management diaries, this will aid in theintegration of self-management diaries into regular health-care practice and enhance patients’self-management of their disease.