MULTIMEDIA SUPPORT FOR COUPLES IN INFERTILITY TREATMENT

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

We propose development of an interactive CD-ROM to provide psychosocial information and support to couples seeking infertility consultation and treatment. While there is a vast amount of medical and technical information about infertility assessment and treatments available to couples, there is a paucity of information about the psychosocial aspects of infertility. Providing couples with a psycho-educational intervention at the beginning of the process can reduce anticipatory distress, facilitate adaptive coping and appropriate self-care, and empower couples in becoming informed partners in care and more effective self-advocates within medical systems. Effective patient preparation fosters patient satisfaction and can lead to improved health outcomes. During Phase I, a prototype CD-ROM, demonstrating the nature and quality of the final program, will be developed through a process involving input from reproductive specialists, couples who have experienced infertility consultation and treatment, consumer advocates, potential purchasers of such a program and application developers. The prototype will be evaluated and tested by potential end-users and experts. Phase II will include a clinical field trial of the program's effectiveness. A program with demonstrated efficacy in helping couples cope with the stresses of infertility intervention will represent a significant advance in the field of reproductive health. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: The program's scientific, public health, and commercial potential is excellent. If the program proves effective in helping couples make better adjustments to the emotional and social stresses of infertility assessment and treatment, it will be seen as valuable resource by providers and consumers. ITS is working closely with InteliHealth, an Internet-based, health care information company to market its products. Once the program is completed, InteliHealth would be quite interested in marketing this product through their online store. In addition, ITS will seek to develop a collaborative marketing partnership with RESOLVE OF THE BAY STATE, a consumer-focused health organization, to facilitate the marketing and sales of this product.