Implementation of a patient-reported outcome measure based digital journey and automation tool

BACKGROUND Patient blood management (PBM) has been shown to improve patient outcomes and optimise resource use. However, the systematic collection and analysis of patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) remains challenging, limiting their integration into PBM pathways and into value-based healthcare (VBHC) strategies. OBJECTIVE(S) This study aims to evaluate the feasibility and adherence to an automated VBHC digital tool for PROMs collection in a population of cardiac surgical patients, within the context of PBM implementation. DESIGN A single-centre, pragmatic, prospective feasibility study. SETTING A tertiary Portuguese hospital considering data from 1 March to 6 September 2024. A total of 12 professionals were actively involved in the patient journey design. PATIENTS A total of 221 patients (65.2% men, mean age 66.7 ± 9.9 years) with a scheduled cardiothoracic surgery were included. Main outcome measures: Percentage of planned interactions successfully completed. RESULTS A two-phase digital PROMs journey was implemented in less than 2 months. A total of 638 interactions were completed by 221 patients, resulting in a global completion proportion of 72.1%. 36-Item Short Form Survey Instrument (SF-36) and BPI questionnaires, completed by 77% of patients, results at 90 days compared to results at initial evaluation (SF-36 physical: t = -0.424, P = 0.681; mental: Z = 33.0, P = 1.000; Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) Pain Severity and Interference: Z = 23.0, P = 0.646). The PHQ-9, completed by 76% of patients, identified five severe and nine moderately severe depression cases. Educational content had a 73.9% reading completion proportion across 303 views. CONCLUSIONS We showed the feasibility of implementing a digital tool to monitor patient PROMs, along with its adoption by patients and health professionals. This strategy has the potential to contribute to improving healthcare professionals’ motivation, access to real-world data, personalised monitoring, and allowing for faster implementation of corrective actions, with an impact on patients’ outcomes and costs.