O.19.5 - (WIP) Testing the effects of combining the internet and the provider on patient outcomes: Presenter(s): Remco Sanders, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands.

The internet and the healthcare provider are the two main sources of information for cancer patients. Research shows that patients often go online to prepare for a consultation. Both the internet and the provider receive ample separate scientific attention. However, while cross-sectional research hinted at positive effects of integrating the internet in the consultation, no experimental research is known that tries to unravel conditions (i.e., patient's needs, the type of information encountered, and communication strategy used by the provider) underlying such effect. Therefore, in this experiment, these factors are manipulated to gain insight into the interplay between these concepts and patients' outcomes. A 2(patients' needs; cognitive vs. affective) x 2(information; cognitive vs. affective) x 2(providers' integration communication strategy; hindering vs. facilitating) experiment is proposed, a minimum of 300 (ex)cancer patients will be included. We expect that patients in a condition where the patient' need and the website they see is matched (e.g., affective need and website) show less intention to discuss the online information, because their needs are fulfilled (h1). However, if the need and content do not match, their needs are not fulfilled thus resulting in a higher intention to discuss this information. Furthermore, we expect that an integration-facilitating communication style by the provider is positively influencing patient outcomes (h2) but that this relationship is moderated by the intention to discuss the online health information (h3). Patients with high intention to discuss the online health information will react more negatively to a hindering communication style compared to patients with a lower intention to discuss. These insights can help providers decide when and using what communication strategy they can discuss patients' internet use. Discussing patients' internet use in these situations could strengthen the patient-provider relationship, patient outcomes and, in turn, health outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]