Sociodemographic, personal, and disease-related determinants of referral to patient-reported outcome-based follow-up of remote outpatients: a prospective cohort study

PURPOSE: We examined the association between sociodemographic, personal, and disease-related determinants and referral to a new model of health care that uses patient-reported outcomes (PRO) measures for remote outpatient follow-up (PRO-based follow-up).

METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study among outpatients with epilepsy at the Department of Neurology at Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark. Included were all persons aged ≥ 15 years visiting the department for the first time during the period from May 2016 to May 2018. Patients received a questionnaire containing questions about health literacy, self-efficacy, patient activation, well-being, and general health. We also collected data regarding sociodemographic status, labour market affiliation, and co-morbidity from nationwide registers. Associations were analysed as time-to-event using the pseudo-value approach. Missing data were handled using multiple imputations.

RESULTS: A total of 802 eligible patients were included in the register-based analyses and 411 patients (51%) responded to the questionnaire. The results based on data from registers indicated that patients were less likely to be referred to PRO-based follow-up if they lived alone, had low education or household income, received temporary or permanent social benefits, or if they had a psychiatric diagnosis. The results based on data from the questionnaire indicated that patients were less likely to be referred to PRO-based follow-up if they reported low levels of health literacy, self-efficacy, patient activation, well-being, or general health.

CONCLUSION: Both self-reported and register-based analyses indicated that socioeconomically advantaged patients were referred more often to PRO-based follow-up than socioeconomically disadvantaged patients.