ONLINE HELP - CANCER-PATIENTS PARTICIPATE IN A COMPUTER-MEDIATED SUPPORT GROUP

This study investigated a computer-mediated support group, for six bre ast cancer patients. For a three-month period, patients used home comp uters to connect to a Computer bulletin board on which they read messa ges from and posted messages to each other. The patients had no diffic ulty Iearning to use the computer and used 11 an average of one hour a week. The patients discussed their medical conditions, shared persona l concerns, and offered support. This online approach provided many fe atures of traditional face-to-face support groups.