A qualitative study of factors influencing ePHR adoption by caregivers and care providers of Alzheimer's patients: An extension of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology model

Abstract

Background and Aims: As the nowadays provision of many healthcare services relies on technology, a better understanding of the factors contributing to the acceptance and use of technology in health care is essential. For Alzheimer's patients, an electronic personal health record (ePHR) is one such technology. Stakeholders should understand the factors affecting the adoption of this technology for its smooth implementation, adoption, and sustainable use. So far, these factors have not fully been understood for Alzheimer's disease (AD)-specific ePHR. Therefore, the present study aimed to understand these factors in ePHR adoption based on the perceptions and views of care providers and caregivers involved in AD care.Methods: This qualitative study was conducted from February 2020 to August 2021 in Kerman, Iran. Seven neurologists and 13 caregivers involved in AD care were interviewed using semi-structured and in-depth interviews. All interviews were conducted through phone contacts amid Covid-19 imposed restrictions, recorded, and transcribed verbatim. The transcripts were coded using thematic analysis based on the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) model. ATLAS.ti8 was used for data analysis.Results: The factors affecting ePHR adoption in our study comprised subthemes under the five main themes of performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions of the UTAUT model, and the participants' sociodemographic factors. From the 37 facilitating factors and 13 barriers identified for ePHR adoption, in general, the participants had positive attitudes toward the ease of use of this system. The stated obstacles were dependent on the participants' sociodemographic factors (such as age and level of education) and social influence (including concern about confidentiality and privacy). In general, the participants considered ePHRs efficient and useful in increasing neurologists' information about Health Sci. Rep.

Unpaid carers of people with dementia and information communication technology: Use, impact and ideas for the future

“…However, parallel findings suggest that unpaid carers commonly experience split feelings towards ICT. Amiri et al (2023) , Hwang et al (2020) and Dai et al (2019) recorded how carers perceived digital health services and wearable devices to be useful for communicating with care practitioners and accessing timely information and support. Similarly to current participants, the studies also reported that carers with lower digital self-efficacy felt impeded by the presentation and language of the ICT systems.…”

Security and Privacy Concerns in the Adoption of IoT Smart Homes: A User-Centric Analysis

“…Parastoo Amiri et al conducted a qualitative study on factors influencing ePHR adoption by caregivers and care providers of Alzheimer's patients, extending the UTAUT model. Their research emphasizes the role of perceived security and privacy in healthcare technology adoption, aligning with UTAUT constructs [32]. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) serves as a comprehensive framework for understanding user perceptions, intentions, and behaviours in the context of technology adoption, with a particular focus on security and privacy considerations.…”