Abstract

So far, there is only little published knowledge about the use of mobile applications used by breast cancer patients especially from the physicians’ point of view. This qualitative case study explored how healthcare professionals experience the use of an application to assist care for cancer patients. The study was conducted at a Finnish University hospital and the research material was collected from the interviews. The study revealed that a patient-reported outcome system can identify side effects of the treatment and make it easier to follow the wellbeing of the patients. The messaging feature was able to reduce phone calls from the patients but was sometimes perceived as difficult by professionals. In turn, adverse event information improved patient-physician interaction and increased the reliability of the information the doctor received. Lack of integration into the patient information system affected negatively on the professionals’ experiences of using the system. Furthermore, the study revealed how important the role of the nurses in using the system was. Healthcare professionals are especially looking for systems that could save their work time and give them a clear picture of how their patients are doing.