Expectations and Experiences of a Group of Patients Enrolled in an Educational Program for Rheumatoid Arthritis at a Specialized Care Center in Colombia

Ruth Alexandra Castiblanco-Montañez; Diana Buitrago-Garcia; Adriana Arévalo Velandia; Julián David Garzón-Cepeda; Fernando Rodríguez-Florido; Guillermo Sánchez Vanegas; Pedro Santos-Moreno

doi:10.2147/JMDH.S380001

Expectations and Experiences of a Group of Patients Enrolled in an Educational Program for Rheumatoid Arthritis at a Specialized Care Center in Colombia

J Multidiscip Healthc. 2023 Feb 22:16:483-492. doi: 10.2147/JMDH.S380001. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Ruth Alexandra Castiblanco-Montañez¹, Diana Buitrago-Garcia^{2

3}, Adriana Arévalo Velandia⁴, Julián David Garzón-Cepeda⁴, Fernando Rodríguez-Florido⁵, Guillermo Sánchez Vanegas^{2

6}, Pedro Santos-Moreno⁵

Affiliations

¹ Care Perspectives Research Group, Faculty of Nursing, Fundación Universitaria de Ciencias de la Salud - FUCS, Bogotá, Colombia.
² Clinical Epidemiology Graduate Program, Fundación Universitaria de Ciencias de la Salud - FUCS, Bogotá, Colombia.
³ Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (ISPM) and Graduate School for Health Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
⁴ Faculty of Nursing, Fundación Universitaria de Ciencias de la Salud - FUCS, Bogotá, Colombia.
⁵ BIOMAB IPS -Center for Rheumatoid Arthritis, Bogotá, Colombia.
⁶ Clinical Epídemiology, Hospital Universitario Mayor-Méderi, Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia.

Abstract

Introduction: Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease diagnosed in a productive stage of life. Patients with RA experience changes in their musculoskeletal system, overall health and quality of life. It has been identified that patients with RA do not have appropriate knowledge about their condition. Educational programs can provide new knowledge, accompaniment, and closer follow-up to improve empowerment and quality of life in patients with RA.

Purpose: To describe rheumatoid arthritis patients' experiences, perceptions, and expectations when enrolling on a multicomponent educational program in a specialized RA setting.

Patients and methods: A qualitative study was done. Patients with RA who attended a specialized center and enrolled in an educational program participated in two focus groups. The focus group discussions and the interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, analyzed, and emerging themes were constructed.

Results: Thirty-one participants were included in the focus groups. The median age was 60 years IQR (54-67), 92% were female. Two relevant categories emerged: first, the experience of being diagnosed with RA. Second, the program's ability to empower participants with knowledge and the possibility of transferring knowledge to other patients with the same condition. In addition, patients gave a high score to the expectations regarding the educational program.

Conclusion: Understanding patients' expectations when enrolling in an educational program allows educators and clinicians to understand their motivations to create tailored programs that can contribute to acquiring empowerment in the educational process and managing their disease. Stakeholders should consider patients' expectations when implementing these interventions for patients with RA to adapt the intervention according to the patient's context and needs, which will directly affect the patient's adherence and lead to better use and allocation of resources for educational activities.

Keywords: patient education; patient preference; qualitative research.

Grants and funding

This study is part of the project “Impact of the implementation of a multicomponent educational program for patients with rheumatoid arthritis in a specialized center in Bogotá. Colombia” (695180763684), funded by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation of Colombia (MINCIENCIAS), through call 807 for Science, Technology, and Innovation in Health projects – 2018.