Backgorund: Patients with Multiple Myeloma who undergo autologous stem cell transplantation (HSCT) are often hospitalized in protective isolation in a single room.They cannot leave it and just one visitor can visit them for a short time.This situation might negatively affect their QoL.It was hypothesised that the use of a tablet during their hospital stay in isolation could improve their QoL by reducing the distance with the external world and increasing their activities in the isolation room. Material and methods: This was a pre-post study with two patient groups.A total of 8 patients completed the FACT-BMT questionnaire at admission and at discharge.Among these,3 participants were provided with a tablet with Internet during all the hospitalization.The tablet had a lot of applications to communicate with the external world, to listen music, to play games and other. Their primary informal caregivers( n=6) completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale at admission and discharge to evaluate a change in anxiety and depression. Results: At discharge patients who used the tablet showed an improvement in the Social/Family Well-Being and their Physical/Social/Relational Limitations remained stable.The QoL of patients without a tablet worsened in these aspects.In particular patients with tablet referred to feel close like before to their caregivers, to feel closer than before to their friends and less far than before from people.They also reported that the tablet helped them to maintain a visual contact with the external world in an active way during the isolation.They used mostly applications to communicate, to read news and to play games.Although the tablet did not show a positive effect on caregivers'anxiety and depression, they believed that the experience was positive because the tablet facilitated the relationship with the external world and family virtual contact. Conclusions: Since protective isolation can worsen patients'QoL, nurses should help patients to find effective strategies to spend their time in a positive way and to reduce the isolation burden. (Table Presented).
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Scala, V., Annibali, O., Pensieri, C., Biagioli, V., & Tirindelli, M. C. (2017). A try to positively influence the quality of life of patients undergoing stem cell transplantation in protective isolation with the use of a tablet. Annals of Oncology, 28, vi111–vi112. https://doi.org/10.1093/annonc/mdx438.027