EVALUATION OF A COMPUTER-ASSISTED EDUCATI ON-PROGRAM FOR HYPERTENSIVEPATIENTS

ISIS tutorial program (French abreviation for Animated and Computerize d Initiation into Health) was carried out for Macintosh type computers to place a modem and interactive learning device at cardiovascular ri sk patients' disposal. Such a program combines strict scientific expla nations and aesthetic attractiveness of multimedia communication. To t est the effect of this device on health knowledge gain, 158 hypertensi ves admitted in one-day or in half-week clinics for an initial check-u p or for a therapeutic adjustment were randomised into two groups: a c ontrol group (n = 79), receiving-usual education (contacts with physic ians, nurses, dieteticians, health oriented booklets), and an experime ntal or ''ISIS'' group (n = 79) undergoing an interactive session with the computer during 30 to 60 minutes, in addition to usual education. Health knowledge of both groups was assessed through a 28-item questi onnaire, before any education procedure, two months after the discharg e, through a standardized interview by phone, thanks to the same inves tigator. On the whole, 69 + 69 = 138 complete case records could be an alysed. Initial health knowledge mean score, at admission to the hospi tal, was 14.3 +/- 4.2 (range: 4 to 25). This score significantly impro ved among the whole population (difference between the two evaluations : 3.7 +/- 3.5 points; p = 0.0001). Improvement was greater in ISIS gro up than in controls (p = 0.02). Among hypertensives with initial score s less-than-or-equal-to 16, improvement was respectively 4.5 +/- 3.6 a nd 2.9 +/- 3.0 for ISIS and control groups (p < 0.01). Among hypertens ives diagnosed more than 6 months prior to the assessment, improvement was respectively 3.8 +/- 3.5 and 1.8 +/- 3.0 for ISIS and control gro up (p < 0.01). These results show the effectiveness of a computer assi sted education program for hypertensive patients admitted in specializ ed clinics.