Individual Abstract within a Delegate Designed Symposium Clinical Oncology Society of Australia Annual Scientific Meeting 2019

Developing a Roadmap for Digital Health in Cancer in Australia (#94)

Bogda Koczwara 1 , Emma Kemp 1 , Joshua Trigg 2 , Lisa Beatty 1 , Haryanna Dhillon 3 , Anthony Maeder 4 , Chris Christensen 5 , Vincent McCauley 6 , Patricia AH Williams 1
  1. Flinders University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia
  2. The Cancer Council of South Australia, Adelaide, SA, Australia
  3. University of Sydney , Camperdown, NSW, Australia
  4. Flinders University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia
  5. Cancer Voices SA, Adelaide , SA, Australia
  6. Telstra Health, Telstra, Adelaide, SA, Australia

Aims:

As digital technologies are increasingly adopted in cancer care, there is a need for a systematic approach to development and application, to maximise benefits and ensure equity of access. However, strategic frameworks for implementation of digital health in Australia are not cancer-specific. Additionally, there is a need for any cancer-specific framework to reflect consumer-driven priorities. This study aimed to identify stakeholder (including consumer) priorities, to inform the Australian Digital Health in Cancer Care Roadmap.

Methods

Priority action items were developed through meta-review and stakeholder consultation, across five categories; (1) design and development; (2) adoption and integration; (3) governance and evaluation; (4) specific digital interventions; and (5) research gaps. Following expert panel review, stakeholders including consumers and other end-users of digital health applications responded to two rounds of Delphi consensus survey, indicating (a) level of priority for each item, and (b) appropriate time-frames for achieving each item. Data were analysed using frequencies, mean ranks, and Kendall’s Concordance Coefficient.

Results

A total of 29 stakeholders responded to Round 1, 23 to Round 2. Most highly ranked priorities included: end-user involvement in design and development;  increased quality and usability of digital technologies; monitoring access to, engagement with, and use of digital technologies; facilitating two-way communication between patients and health professionals; developing a research strategy to identify and address research gaps, and reflecting consumer-identified priorities in research. Stakeholders identified the appropriate time-frame for achieving most priorities to be short-term (up to two years).

Conclusions

Stakeholder-identified priorities reflected in the Australian Digital Health in Cancer Care Roadmap indicate consumer and other end-user preferences for increased quality/value of digital health technologies and increased involvement and engagement in development and use of digital technologies in cancer care. The Roadmap provides strategic directions for and implementation of digital health in Australian cancer care.