Online peer support in rheumatology: a mixed methods exploration of patient and clinician views and experiences

Clicks: 10
ID: 328405
2026
Free PDF
Article Quality & Performance Metrics
Overall Quality
Not rated
Combines reader engagement with the AI quality analysis. This article has not been analysed, so there is no overall score — reader engagement is measured and shown alongside.
AI Quality Assessment
Not analyzed
Readership in this journal
Emerging

Ranked #328 of 339 articles by views in Lara D. Veeken

Most read Least read

Bar heights use a square-root scale. Only the 120 most-read articles are drawn; the journal has 339 in total.

Mint this article as an NFT
Not yet minted

Create a permanent, verifiable on-chain record of this article on the Scimatic Network. The NFT is held in your Journament account, and you can withdraw it to your own wallet at any time.

5 SUSD one-off · no wallet required
Sign in to mint
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Online peer support groups (OSGs) are increasingly used by patients with rheumatic diseases, yet their benefits, risks, and impact on the clinician-patient relationship are not well characterised. We examined how patients and clinicians perceive and experience OSGs. METHODS: Mixed methods combining online surveys and interviews with rheumatology patients and clinicians. Measures of satisfaction with life and care were compared by t-tests between OSG members and non-members. Free-text and interview data underwent thematic analysis. RESULTS: Three themes were identified from surveys (n = 1316 patients, n = 317 clinicians) and interviews (n = 22 patients, n = 14 clinicians). 1. VALIDATION AND AFFIRMATION: OSGs provided emotional reassurance, understanding, and belonging, especially those with rare or "invisible" diseases who felt disbelieved by others. 2. PATIENT EMPOWERMENT THROUGH HEALTH LITERACY: OSGs filled informational and relational gaps left by time-limited healthcare systems, offering practical, experience-based advice. Although 85% of patients reported finding helpful information on OSGs, 48% reported misinformation circulating in groups. Effective moderation was viewed as key. 3. TENSIONS AND INEQUITIES WITHIN PEER SPACES: 71% of clinicians viewed OSGs as helpful, while many worried about negativity and distrust in healthcare systems. Members described "toxic positivity," "toxic negativity," and exclusionary dynamics within the OSGs, with younger, male, and racially minoritised patients more likely to report feeling unwelcome. CONCLUSION: OSGs can offer meaningful emotional and practical benefits to patients with rheumatic diseases, particularly those who feel marginalised in social or clinical contexts. However, these benefits coexist with challenges around misinformation, inclusivity and the clinician-patient relationship.
Reference Key
openalex_W7212285550 Use this key to autocite in the manuscript while using SciMatic Manuscript Manager or Thesis Manager
Authors Shihab Ahmed, Martha Piper, Michael Bosley, Shaista Tayabali, Alice Tunks, Sean Humfrey, Wendy Diment, Max Yates, James A Bourgeois, Melanie Sloan
Are you one of these authors? Claim your profile
Journal Lara D. Veeken
Year 2026
DOI
10.1093/rheumatology/keag492
URL
https://academic.oup.com/rheumatology/advance-article-pdf/doi/10.1093/rheumatology/keag492/71032728/keag492.pdf
Keywords Keywords not found

Citations

No citations found. To add a citation, contact the admin at info@scimatic.org

Comments

No comments yet. Be the first to comment on this article.