The goal of this research is to produce a marketable innovative self- instructional interactive video resource (IVR) that prepares adults to prevent and manage oral complications associated with cancer treatment. The IVR is a multimedia tutorial which combines a CD-ROM and a videodisc. Since most cancer treatments are given on an ambulatory basis, responsibility for monitoring and managing side effects has shifted to the patient. As the need for patient education has grown, cost containment has minimized the resources to meet those needs. Success in this research would result in the production of the first IVR designed to prepare students with cancer to use state-of-the-art prevention and symptom management techniques. Specifically, the aims of Phase I study are to: 1) develop an instructional design plan (IDP) for the IVR and have it critiqued by experts 2) sketch a treatment of the IVR and have the treatment critiqued by experts 3) configure optimal delivery hardware 4) identify the most cost-effective, appropriate development software program for authoring the interactive resource. During Phase II, the storyboard and script will be developed and pre- tested. The resource will be produced and tested for effectiveness in a controlled experiment.
Virtually all patients receiving radiation to the head and neck and approximately 40% of patients receiving chemotherapy for malignancies in other sites develop oral complications. A resource that effectively prepares them to prevent or minimize these complications without further burdening limited health care resources would be a cost-effective contribution to health care. This proposed IVR is intended to be a self-directed resource used in patient education departments or in private areas of outpatient cancer treatment centers or physicians' offices. If successful, this resource would provide essential instructions that could ultimately facilitate timely completion of cancer treatment, preserve the quality of life and avoid potentially life-threatening complications.
