If you have been asked by your osteopath to collect PROM data you will require a code to access the web or mobile app. You can then access the link to the correct page by clicking here. This will bring up options to allow you to:
- Download the app onto a mobile phone (if you are not sure what sort of phone you have see our advice page on mobile phones). If you are not sure how to download the app onto your phone see our explanation.
- Download the app onto an Android tablet;
- Access the app using your laptop or desktop computer.
If you are experiencing any difficulties with accessing the questionnaire, please contact Carol Fawkes either by email (c.fawkes@qmul.ac.uk) or by telephone (07494059509).
Frequently Asked Questions about data collection
What does the app look like?
Here are some screens showing the app:
Is my data secure?
The online system and web app have been developed by Clinvivo Ltd, a University of Warwick spin-out company specialising in data capture. The system has been extensively tested. All data are anonymised and encrypted. All data are held on a secure server with the company which has created the app.
Will my data be sold or used for commercial purposes?
Your information will not be made available to anyone else. We will not sell it or use it for any commercial purposes.
Background to the development of the PROM app.
During the early months of 2014, osteopaths were asked to invite their patients to participate in either focus groups or individual interviews as we wanted to learn more about patients’ views about using Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) when they visited an osteopath for treatment.
What are patient reported outcome measures?
Patient-reported outcomes measures (PROMs) are reports coming directly from patients about how they feel or function in relation to a health condition and its therapy without interpretation by healthcare professionals or anyone else (Patrick et al, 2008).
Why are osteopaths collecting data PROM data?
The National Council for Osteopathic Research (NCOR) is developing a system to collect PROM data directly from patients. This is being achieved using either a computer (web app) or using a mobile phone (mobile app). This is a new innovation in osteopathic care and this study has received ethical review from the ethics committee at Barts and The London Queen Mary’s School of Medicine and Dentistry.
Collecting PROM data directly from you and independent of your osteopath’s practice will help us to identify changes in your symptoms as a result of treatment. Many more organisations e.g. the National Health Service and health insurers are collecting this type of data also.
At the end of the study, all of the anonymous data collected will be analysed by the research team. This will help us identify any problems with using the app, look at how well the PROMs have performed, and identify changes in symptoms in patients receiving osteopathic care. Further information concerning the progress of this study will be available on this site as it becomes available.
How has this system been developed?
We have spoken to both patients and osteopaths about their views on collecting practice-based data. We asked patients:
- If they would be willing to do this;
- Where they would prefer to do this either at home or in a private area of the practice;
- Whether they would prefer to use the Internet or to download a mobile phone app.
We also asked patients about some specific PROMs and which ones they preferred e.g. using PROMs with words only, or using PROMs with both words and a numbered scale.
In addition we also spoke to osteopaths about their views concerning the collection of practice-based data, and examined the scientific literature about this topic.
What have we done so far?
You can read more about the progress on the study by clicking here.
What did the pilot study look at?
The pilot study is looking at three key areas:
- Feasibility – is the system acceptable to patients, and are they willing to use it;
- Responsiveness – do the PROMs being used detect change in patients’ symptoms;
- Test-retest reliability – do PROMs which have been developed for paper completion work the same when used electronically.
A copy of the participant information sheet for the feasibility study can be found here.
Contact information
If you have any further questions about using this data collection system, please contact Carol Fawkes either by email (c.fawkes@qmul.ac.uk) or by telephone (07494059509).