The promise of virtual navigation in cancer care: Insights from patients and health care providers

Abstract

Virtual navigation (VN) in health care is a proactive process by which patients obtain information and support via Internet resources to manage their illness demands. The objective of this analysis was to explore converging and diverging perspectives of key stakeholders: patients with cancer and Health Care Providers (HCPs), about a cancer-related VN tool called the Oncology Interactive Navigator (OIN™). A qualitative secondary analysis was performed combining data sets from two prior studies exploring perspectives of VN among patients (study 1, n=20) and HCPs (study 2, n=13). An inductive approach was used to explore converging and diverging views across groups. Findings explore how patients’ and HCPs’ views converge and diverge and the processes necessary to ensure optimal uptake of VN innovations in cancer care.