Living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and being followed uip through telemedicine - a phenomenological approach

Abstract

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) provides substantially reduced health related quality of life (HQoL). Telemonitoring on COPD patients appears to have a positive effect on improving HQoL. This study has a phenomenological approach, and ten informants, who were followed-up between 1 and 3 months in their own homes through telemonitoring of COPD symptoms, narrated their lived experiences of HQoL. The results show that the informants experienced safety and increased knowledge through the digital dialog (telemedicine) with expertise nurses, which indirectly improved their HQoL, and in term lead to increased mastery and control in managing their disease. Several studies show an increased HQoL, but the benefits are still limited and there is a need for further research.