Assessment of health technology acceptability for remote monitoring of patients with COVID-19: A measurement model for user perceptions of pulse oximeters

Abstract

Objective This study aims to develop a measurement model for health technology acceptability using a theoretical framework and a range of validated instruments to measure user experience, acceptance, usability, health and digital health literacy. Methods A cross-sectional evaluation study using a mixed-methods approach was conducted. An online survey was administered to patients who used a pulse oximeter in a virtual hospital setting during COVID-19. The model development was conducted in three steps: (1) exploratory factor analysis for conceptual model development, (2) measurement model confirmation through confirmatory factor analysis followed by structural equation modelling and (3) test of model external validity on four outcome measures. Finally, the different constructs of the developed model were used to compare two types of pulse oximeters by measuring the standardised scores. Results Two hundred and two participants were included in the analysis, 37.6% were female and the average age was 53 years (SD:15.38). A four-construct model comprising Task Load, Affective Attitude, Self-Efficacy and Value of Use (0.636–0.857 factor loadings) with 12 items resulted from the exploratory factor analysis and yielded a good fit (RMSEA = .026). Health and digital health literacy did not affect the overall reliability of the model. Frustration, performance, trust and satisfaction were identified as outcomes of the model. No significant differences were observed in the acceptability constructs when comparing the two pulse oximeter devices. Conclusions This article proposes a model for the measurement of the acceptability of health technologies used by patients in a remote care setting based on the use of a pulse oximeter in COVID-19 remote monitoring.