Patients’ perspectives on the quality of online patient education materials: A qualitative study

Access to online patient education information can lead to more effective self‑care and disease management. However, the large amount of online information provided through unknown or unreliable sources can challenge patients to trust and use this information. This study was designed to examine the opinions of Iranian gastrointestinal patients about the quality of online information used.

A qualitative study was conducted using thematic analysis. Data were gathered via a semi‑structured interview with 29 gastrointestinal patients, and data analysis was performed by qualitative content analysis using open coding with MAXQDA 2018 software.

Based on the study, 22 codes were extracted in nine subcategories named as: “Emphasis on the identity of providers,” “Nature of online information,” “Distrust on online information,” “Poor quality of information,” “Giving misinformation,” “False impact,” “Improve communication,” “Positive effect on the patient,” “Better Diagnosis.”

In the current situation, Iranian patients are not confident enough about the quality of available online information. They believe that the use of current poor‑quality information has negative consequences. However, they tend to use online patient education materials are produced in Persian by reputable scientific authorities. Using online information can increase patients’ knowledge and lead to better communication with medical staff and other similar patients. They can use this information for self‑care with more confidence, and such an approach can also have significant benefits for the national health system.