Advancing Patient-Centered Care in Tuberculosis Management: A Mixed-Methods Appraisal of Video Directly Observed Therapy
Abstract Background Directly observed therapy (DOT) remains an integral component of treatment support and adherence monitoring in tuberculosis care. In-person DOT is resource intensive and often burdensome for patients. Video DOT (vDOT) has been proposed as an alternative to increase treatment flex...
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Published in | Open forum infectious diseases Vol. 5; no. 4; p. ofy046 |
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Main Authors | , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
US
Oxford University Press
01.04.2018
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Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | Abstract
Background
Directly observed therapy (DOT) remains an integral component of treatment support and adherence monitoring in tuberculosis care. In-person DOT is resource intensive and often burdensome for patients. Video DOT (vDOT) has been proposed as an alternative to increase treatment flexibility and better meet patient-specific needs.
Methods
We conducted a pragmatic, prospective pilot implementation of vDOT at 3 TB clinics in Maryland. A mixed-methods approach was implemented to assess (1) effectiveness, (2) acceptability, and (3) cost. Medication adherence on vDOT was compared with that of in-person DOT. Interviews and surveys were conducted with patients and providers before and after implementation, with framework analysis utilized to extract salient themes. Last, a cost analysis assessed the economic impacts of vDOT implementation across heterogeneous clinic structures.
Results
Medication adherence on vDOT was comparable to that of in-person DOT (94% vs 98%, P = .17), with a higher percentage of total treatment doses (inclusive of weekend/holiday self-administration) ultimately observed during the vDOT period (72% vs 66%, P = .03). Video DOT was well received by staff and patients alike, who cited increased treatment flexibility, convenience, and patient privacy. Our cost analysis estimated a savings with vDOT of $1391 per patient for a standard 6-month treatment course.
Conclusions
Video DOT is an acceptable and important option for measurement of TB treatment adherence and may allow a higher proportion of prescribed treatment doses to be observed, compared with in-person DOT. Video DOT may be cost-saving and should be considered as a component of individualized, patient-centered case management plans. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 2328-8957 2328-8957 |
DOI: | 10.1093/ofid/ofy046 |