OBJECTIVES: To determine the demographics and disease characteristics of online support users, describe their activities and extent of participation, and to evaluate the empowering processes and outcomes experienced by online support users.
METHODS: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted for psoriasis patients in the Philippines who are members of online support groups Facebook and Yahoo!-based Philippine Psoriasis Online Community, Inc.
RESULTS: A total of 124 Filipino patients with psoriasis who are members of online psoriasis support groups answered the survey. The mean age of the respondents was 34.6 years (9.527). Most were female (56.5%), college graduates (68.5%), and employed (69.4%). Majority rated their overall health status as fairly poor (46.8%) or average (37.1%), and 74.2% answered having moderate or severe psoriasis. More than half (58.9%) reported visiting the network at least once a week. The most common activity performed by the participants was reading posts (34.33%) and the least was offering advice (8.33%). There were more respondents who did not contribute postings (58.1%). In general, the users only sometimes experienced empowering processes; the most frequent one was 'encountering emotional support'. The empowering outcome experienced to the strongest degree was being 'better informed'. Poorer health status was significantly associated with a shorter duration of visit to the online network.
CONCLUSIONS: With the rising influence of the internet, the potential of local online support programs as a social outlet and source of support is emphasized. The Filipino online psoriasis support group is an actively-growing community which may help patients cope with their disease.