Chronic diseases are the leading cause of mortality in Slovenia, making it vital to develop new strategies for the early identification of risk factors and effective monitoring and management of chronic diseases. Digitalisation of the healthcare system is enabling the development of telemedicine treatment that can play an important role in both the management and prevention of chronic diseases. In Slovenia, the uptake of telemedicine among patients with type 2 diabetes and/or arterial hypertension – two of the most common chronic diseases – is under researched. In this master thesis, we aim to investigate the telemedicine experience of patients affected by these two conditions. We explore the acceptance factors affecting the initial use as well as the facilitators important to long-term use of telemedicine treatment and equipment. Seven themes have been identified through inductive thematic analysis of four focus groups with patients who received telemedicine treatment and used related equipment as a part of an intervention study. Healthcare staff sponsorship was found to be paramount in shaping patients' intention to actively engage in telemedicine treatment, and the functional assessment of telemedicine equipment. Perceived need for use is the key facilitator for acceptance of telemedicine, while continued use of treatment and equipment depends primarily on the patients health status. Overall, focus group participants assessed telemedicine treatment and equipment as useful in terms of their functionalities, impact on health status and psychological well-being.
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