Volume 25, Issue 2 pp. 334-341
Original Article

Patient preference: a comparison of electronic patient-completed questionnaires with paper among cancer patients

P. Martin MBBchMSc

Corresponding Author

P. Martin MBBchMSc

Medical Oncology Fellow

Department of Medical Oncology, Princess Margaret Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

Corresponding address: Petra Martin, Department of Medical Oncology, Princess Margaret Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada (e-mail: [email protected]).Search for more papers by this author
M.C. Brown MSc

M.C. Brown MSc

Training Coordinator Combiel

Cancer Outcomes Medicine Biostatistics Informatics Epidemiology Laboratory, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
O. Espin-Garcia MSc Candidate

O. Espin-Garcia MSc Candidate

Department of Biostatistics, Princess Margaret Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
S. Cuffe MBBch

S. Cuffe MBBch

Medical Oncology Fellow

Department of Medical Oncology, Princess Margaret Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
D. Pringle BSc

D. Pringle BSc

Research Assistant

Cancer Outcomes Medicine Biostatistics Informatics Epidemiology Laboratory, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
M. Mahler BSc

M. Mahler BSc

Research Assistant

Cancer Outcomes Medicine Biostatistics Informatics Epidemiology Laboratory, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
J. Villeneuve BSc

J. Villeneuve BSc

Research Assistant

Cancer Outcomes Medicine Biostatistics Informatics Epidemiology Laboratory, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
C. Niu BSc

C. Niu BSc

Research Assistant

Cancer Outcomes Medicine Biostatistics Informatics Epidemiology Laboratory, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
R. Charow BSc

R. Charow BSc

Research Assistant

Cancer Outcomes Medicine Biostatistics Informatics Epidemiology Laboratory, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
C. Lam BSc

C. Lam BSc

Research Assistant

Cancer Outcomes Medicine Biostatistics Informatics Epidemiology Laboratory, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
R.M. Shani BSc

R.M. Shani BSc

Research Assistant

Cancer Outcomes Medicine Biostatistics Informatics Epidemiology Laboratory, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
H. Hon B.A.Sc, M.Eng.

H. Hon B.A.Sc, M.Eng.

Research Assistant

Cancer Outcomes Medicine Biostatistics Informatics Epidemiology Laboratory, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
M. Otsuka MSc Candidate, BMc

M. Otsuka MSc Candidate, BMc

Biomedical Communications Graduate Program, Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
W. Xu PhD

W. Xu PhD

Assistant Professor

Department of Biostatistics, Princess Margaret Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
S. Alibhai MSc, MD, FRCPC

S. Alibhai MSc, MD, FRCPC

Senior Scientist

Department of Medicine, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
J. Jenkinson BA, MScBMC, PhD

J. Jenkinson BA, MScBMC, PhD

Assistant Professor

Biomedical Communications Graduate Program, Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
G. Liu MD, MSc, FRCPC

G. Liu MD, MSc, FRCPC

Medical Oncologist

Department of Medical Oncology, Princess Margaret Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

Search for more papers by this author
First published: 20 April 2015
Citations: 6

Abstract

In this study, we compared cancer patients preference for computerised (tablet/web-based) surveys versus paper. We also assessed whether the understanding of a cancer-related topic, pharmacogenomics is affected by the survey format, and examined differences in demographic and medical characteristics which may affect patient preference and understanding. Three hundred and four cancer patients completed a tablet-administered survey and another 153 patients completed a paper-based survey. Patients who participated in the tablet survey were questioned regarding their preference for survey format administration (paper, tablet and web-based). Understanding was assessed with a ‘direct’ method, by asking patients to assess their understanding of genetic testing, and with a ‘composite’ score. Patients preferred administration with tablet (71%) compared with web-based (12%) and paper (17%). Patients <65 years old, non-Caucasians and white-collar professionals significantly preferred the computerised format following multivariate analysis. There was no significant difference in understanding between the paper and tablet survey with direct questioning or composite score. Age (<65 years) and white-collar professionals were associated with increased understanding (both P = 0.03). There was no significant difference in understanding between the tablet and print survey in a multivariate analysis. Patients overwhelmingly preferred computerised surveys and understanding of pharmacogenomics was not affected by survey format.

The full text of this article hosted at iucr.org is unavailable due to technical difficulties.