The Association Between e-Health Literacy and Willingness to Deprescribe Among Patients with Chronic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study from Jordan.

Abstract

Background: Deprescribing refers to the partnered discontinuation of chronic medications to limit the negative impacts of polypharmacy. Polymedicated patients play a key role in the success of deprescribing efforts. eHealth literacy reflects patients' ability to appraise electronically available health-related information to make informed health care decisions, which partly reflect their desire to deprescribe. Objectives: The current study aimed to explore the relationship between eHealth literacy and willingness to deprescribe among patients with chronic diseases. Additionally, the predictors of willingness to deprescribe were examined. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among adult patients with chronic diseases in Jordan. An online questionnaire comprising two validated tools, namely the Electronic Health Literacy Scale (eHEALS) and the Revised Patients' Attitudes Toward Deprescribing (rPATD) Questionnaire, was used for data collection. The questionnaire targeted adult patients with chronic medical conditions in Jordan and was posted to social media portals, following a convenience sampling technique. Results: A total of 719 responses were recorded and included in the final analysis. Participants with higher levels of eHealth literacy were more willing to get their medications deprescribed, as indicated by the perceived use of unneeded medications (p = 0.042). Meanwhile, participants with low levels of eHealth literacy were more likely to report fear of missing out on the potential benefits of deprescribed medications (p = 0.003). Other items that were commonly agreed upon by both the low and high eHealth literacy groups, respectively, included desire for dose reduction (p < 0.001, p < 0.001), belief in the lack of effectiveness of some prescribed medications (p < 0.001, p < 0.001), and fear of precipitating side effects (p = 0.001, p = 0.007). Conclusions: The present study highlighted the relationship between eHealth literacy and a number of items reflecting willingness to deprescribe, and these indicators can be used to guide future deprescribing efforts among eligible patients.