Exploring How Telephone Triage Nurses Support Older People with Multimorbidity to Engage in Digital Self-management

McAleer, Patricia and Doyle, Julie and Dinsmore, John (2023) Exploring How Telephone Triage Nurses Support Older People with Multimorbidity to Engage in Digital Self-management. In: International Conference on Pervasive Computing Technologies for Healthcare. Springer Nature, Switzerland, pp. 244-255.

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Abstract

In the European Union (EU), 50 million people live with multimorbidity (two or more chronic diseases), which increases in prevalence with age. As a result, a significant burden is placed on those who live with multimorbidity and on health care systems that manage it. Hence, solutions to support people aged 65+ years to self-man-age their illnesses are necessary, and digital health technologies hold promise. How-ever, human support may also be necessary, particularly for those managing multiple complex chronic conditions. A nurse-led telephone triage monitoring service offers a potential solution. The aim of this study was to explore the role of a nurse-led telephone triage service in supporting older peoples’ engagement with digital health technology. One focus group was conducted via Zoom with three telephone triage nurses (TTNs), and six telephone interviews were conducted with a sub-set of older people with mul-timorbidity (PwMs). Qualitative data were thematically analysed using Nvivo 12 soft-ware. PwMs reported being motivated to engage in self-management by knowing their readings were being monitored. Looking at data over time and observing trends helped the TTNs to make accurate assessments of the PwMs’ needs. Both PwMs and TTNs spoke about the warmth of their relationship even though it was conducted remotely. In conclusion, triage nurses play an important role in supporting older people to engage in self-management of multimorbid health conditions.

Item Type:	Book Section
Subjects:	Science
Research Centres:	Netwell/CASALA
Depositing User:	Patricia McAleer
Date Deposited:	11 Aug 2026 08:28
Last Modified:	11 Aug 2026 08:28
License:	Creative Commons: Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0
URI:	https://eprints.dkit.ie/id/eprint/1064

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