Palliative and oncological patients' and relatives' views on the establishment of a day ward with telemedicine support

Background/aims: Medical advancements and demographic challenges have increased
numbers of patients with palliative care needs. To address this, the Medical Department of the
Hospital of South Jutland, Denmark aims to establish a Palliative/Oncological Day Ward with
out-of-hours telemedicine support.
The aim is to uncover the perspecti ves' of patients and relatives in relation to the establishment
of a day ward with telemedicine support in connection with the existing palliative care ward.
The results will be used to align patients' wishes with plans for the proposed day ward.
Methods: Qualitative description was employed as the starting point. Semi-structured
interviews were carried out with patients admitted to the palliative care ward and their relatives.
Written and oral information was provided prior to inclusion and written consent was obtained.
All data were anonymised. Ethical permission was sought form the Regional Ethical Committee
(20192000-131). Inductive thematic analysis has been employed in data analysis.
Results: Participants included 12 patients and 5 relatives. Preliminary results are grouped into
limiting and enhancing factors. Results revealed important concerns to patients effecting
preferences for admission on the palliative care ward or admission on the proposed day ward
with out-of-hours telemedicine support. Factors such as close proximity to the hospital, living
with a spouse or relatives, pre-existing knowledge or experience of video communication and
the ability to use a computer/tablet/smartphone contribute positively to patients and relatives
preferences for admission on a day ward with telemedicine support.
Conclusions: Many patients prefer the flexibility presented by admis sion on a day ward with
telemedicine support in their home. Factors such as close proximity to the hospital, family
support in the home and experience with modern communication devices affect patients' and
relatives preferences positively.