Self-help on-line: an outcome evaluation of breast cancer bulletin boards.
Many breast cancer patients find help from on-line self-help groups, consisting of self-directed, asynchronous, bulletin boards. These have yet to be empirically evaluated. Upon joining a group and 6 months later, new members (N=114) to breast cancer bulletin boards completed measures of depression (CES-D), growth (PTGI) and psychosocial wellbeing (FACT-B). Improvement was statistically significant on all three measures. This serves as a first validation of Internet bulletin boards as a source of support and help for breast cancer patients. These boards are of particular interest because they are free, accessible and support comes from peers and not from professional facilitators.
Lieberman
Morton A
MA
University of California, San Francisco 94118-0848, USA. mal@itsa.ucsf.edu
Goldstein
Benjamin A
BA
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological / Q000502:physiology; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet / Q000592:standards*; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D012657:Self-Help Groups / Q000592:standards*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012944:Social Support; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000517:prevention & control; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors