A qualitative study of older adults and computer use for health education: 'It opens people's eyes'

• Published in: Journal of communication in healthcare 2011-04, Vol.4 (1), p.38-45
• Main Authors: Alicea-Planas, Jessica, Neafsey, Patricia J, Anderson, Elizabeth
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Communication; Hypertension; Nurse practitioners; Older adults; Qualitative
• ISSN: 1753-8068; 1753-8076
• DOI: 10.1179/175380611X12950033990179

Adults over the age of 60 struggle with achieving target blood pressure readings due to difficulties seeing, hearing, and understanding medical information, which can result in poor adherence and drug interactions that can be fatal. According to the Institute of Medicine (2000) approximately 10% of adverse drug events may be attributed to communication failure between the provider and patient. Informing patients of potential drug interactions with over-the-counter medications, supplements, and alcohol use can contribute to better blood pressure control. The Next Generation Personal Education Program (PEP-NG) was designed to improve patient care by educating both older adults and their providers about the dangers of adverse drug interactions arising from self-medication. This web-based programme analyses information entered by the patient user (with a stylus on a tablet computer) and delivers tailored interactive educational content applicable to the user's reported medication behaviours. This qualitative study demonstrated that even among participants who may not feel computer literate (older-age generation) it can be a useful tool for information dissemination and also a successful way to improve communication between provider and patient.