PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Main, Deborah S.
AU  - Quintela, Javan
AU  - Araya-Guerra, Rodrigo
AU  - Holcomb, Sherry
AU  - Pace, Wilson D.
TI  - Exploring Patient Reactions to Pen-Tablet Computers: A Report from CaReNet
AID  - 10.1370/afm.92
DP  - 2004 Sep 01
TA  - The Annals of Family Medicine
PG  - 421--424
VI  - 2
IP  - 5
4099  - http://www.annfammed.org/content/2/5/421.short
4100  - http://www.annfammed.org/content/2/5/421.full
SO  - Ann Fam Med2004 Sep 01; 2
AB  - PURPOSE We wanted to study patient receptivity to using pen-tablet computers for collecting data in a practice-based research network. METHODS We analyzed exit interviews and field notes collected by trained research assistants as part of a larger Colorado Research Network (CaReNet) study comparing pen-tablet and paper-pencil methods to collect data for the Primary Care Network Survey (PRINS). RESULTS A total of 168 patients completed a patient exit interview after completion of the pen-tablet–based survey instrument. Analyses of these brief interviews and field notes indicated that patients had favorable reactions to using pen-tablet computers. The most common barriers were related to glitches in the technology; the voice recognition software was the most problematic, with patients (as well as clinicians) finding this feature to be frustrating. CONCLUSIONS Patients were able and willing to use pen-tablet computers for completing forms within busy primary care offices. Increasing patient involvement in practice-based research may be even more practicable through the use of this novel technology, which can allow patient-directed data collection at a single point in time as well as longitudinally.