ICT and collaborative management of terminal cancer patients at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) facilitate health information sharing, and they play crucial roles when patients are debilitated by terminal diseases such as advanced cancer, and require multiple provider care. This study examined how ICTs are being used to share information among medical/paramedical team, the sick and with families/relatives and other stakeholders for the purpose of managing patients with advanced cancer at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Nigeria’s largest teaching hospital. Data was collected from 50 medical practitioners involved in palliative care in the Centre for Palliative Care Unit, Radiotherapy Department and Internal Medicine Department. The doctors reported using mobile phones to link their clients and clients’ relatives more than they did with other technologies, but relations/families of patients reported using a wider range of technologies to link doctors. Mobile fit the working environment in the palliative care where nurses and doctors move around constantly and collaborate extensively. UCH must embark on ICT infrastructure and skill expansion projects, encompassing promoting clinical uses of the technology such as point of care (in the examination room), electronic health records, clinical decision support tools, and order entry systems, among others.