To explore patients’ experiences and preferences of self-testing using white cell count point-of-care test (POCT) and C reactive protein POCT during antibiotic treatment at home.

A University Hospital in the Region of Zealand (DK).

10 inpatients treated with antibiotics who were discharged from hospital to continue antibiotic treatment at home. They were trained in the hospital supervised by research personnel before self-testing at home.

An explorative qualitative study using thematic analysis.

The participants considered the self-testing beneficial, mainly due to not having to travel to get a blood test drawn, the rapid test time and the ability to closely monitor their treatment. The participants perceived that self-testing at home would make them feel more in control of their disease and would give them the ability to live a more normal life. Moreover, self-testing at home showed to be feasible for some patients but with barriers to overcome, such as the ability to use technology and cognitive challenges.

Our study showed that self-testing at home was feasible for some patients, provided they received thorough training at the hospital ensuring that participants were able to conduct the self-testing and use the smartphone technology before transitioning to their home. This could help reduce barriers to home self-testing by highlighting its benefits and emphasising the need for adequate patient guidance and support.

Effective glucose control in surgical patients at risk of hyperglycaemia and hypoglycaemia is crucial, as these conditions can lead to surgical site infections, prolonged hospital stays and death. Fingerstick glucose monitoring (FSGM), the standard measurement of glucose, can be painful for patients and time-consuming for nursing staff, especially with hourly monitoring around surgery. Continuous glucose monitoring systems (CGMS) offer a less invasive alternative with better glucose regulation in outpatients.

The GLUCOSENS study compares the effects of CGMS and FSGM on point-of-care measurements and time-in-range (3.9–10.0 mmol/l) glucose levels (primary outcome), patient satisfaction and experience and nursing staff workload and experience in surgical wards. Furthermore, it evaluates CGMS accuracy during perioperative periods and medical imaging.

This Danish two-centre study will be conducted at the general surgical wards of Odense and Zealand University Hospital and will involve 305 patients over 18 months. The study is divided into three periods: first, a standard care period with point-of-care FSGM (110 patients); second, an intervention period with point-of-care CGMS (110 patients); third, another standard care period with point-of-care FSGM combined with a blinded sensor for comparing continuous glucose data from this period with continuous glucose data from the intervention period (85 patients). Furthermore, the study will include 24 nursing staff.

Data will be collected through medical file reviews on glucose levels, patient satisfaction questionnaires, a patient field study, an observation study of the nursing staff’s workload and qualitative interviews of nursing staff.

The study is registered with the Records of Processing Activities in the Region of Southern Denmark for research and quality projects (ID number: 23/36734) and has been approved by the Regional Scientific Ethical Committee in Southern Denmark (ID number: S-20240041). The results will be published in international peer-reviewed journals.

ClinicalTrials.gov Registry (NCT06473480)