https://doi.org/10.4081/qrmh.2019.7795
Advantages and challenges of using mobile ethnography in a hospital case study: WhatsApp as a method to identify perceptions and practices
Submitted: 30 August 2018
Accepted: 11 June 2019
Published: 23 August 2019
Accepted: 11 June 2019
Abstract Views: 2211
PDF: 921
Publisher's note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
Authors
The focus of this article is to provide the reader with reflexivity and a framework for using mobile ethnography. Based on a case study with an ethnographic approach (including mobile ethnography using WhatsApp), we identified perceptions and practices for improved workflows and procedures related to nurses’ introduction and implementation of self-catheterization at the National Spinal Injuries Centre in Great Britain. We offer detailed procedures, advantages, and challenges in using mobile ethnography. The ethnographic approach consisted of four phases, including initial workshops, go-along observations, interviews, and a mobile ethnographic approach using WhatsApp as a mobile diary for six nurses. Within the case study, three major themes were revealed by the ethnographic approach, with the conclusion that nurses have positive attitudes towards self-catheterization, but these nurses are becoming less influential and the practices around this technique are consequently disappearing. The main result is that use of WhatsApp as a self-tracking tool can extend the methodological toolbox, but reflexivity and preliminary work are required to make the practice beneficial.
Yin R. Case study research: design and methods. 4th ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2009.
Weld KJ, Dmochowski RR. Effect of bladder management on urological complications in spinal cord injured patients. J Urol 2000;163:768-72.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-5347(05)67800-7
Krebs J, Wöllner J, Pannek, J. Risk factors for symptomatic urinary tract infections in individuals with chronic neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction. J Spinal Cord Med 2015;54:682-6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sc.2015.214
Wyndaele J. Complications of intermittent catheterization: their prevention and treatment. J Spinal Cord Med 2002;40:536-41.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.sc.3101348
Coloplast continence life study review 2017/2018. Coloplast 2018, study 2017-18, Article 03. Humlebaek, Denmark: Coloplast; 2018. Available from: https://www.coloplast.com/products/bladder-bowel/continence-life-study/2017/
Marcus GE. Ethnography in/of the world system: the emergence of multi-sited ethnography. Annu Rev Anthropol 1995;24:95-117.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.an.24.100195.000523
Stickdorn M, Frischhut B, Schmid JS. Mobile ethnography: a pioneering research approach for customer-centered destination management. J Tour Anal 2014;19:491-503.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3727/108354214X14090817031198
Hein W, O’Donohoe S, Ryan A. Mobile phones as an extension of the participant observer’s self: Reflections on the emergent role of an emergent technology. Qual Market Res Int J 2011;14:258-73.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/13522751111137497
Bjørner T. Qualitative methods for consumer research: the value of the qualitative approach in theory and practice. Copenhagen: Hans Reitzels; 2015.
Spooncer F. Behavioural studies for marketing and business. Leckhampton: Stanley Thornes; 1992.
Hesse-Bieber SN. The practice of qualitative research: engaging students in the research process. 3rd ed. London: Sage; 2017.
Pink S. Situating everyday life. London: Sage; 2012.
Barton TD. Student nurse practitioners – A rite of passage? The universality of Van Gennep’s model of social transition. J Nurs Educ Pract 2007;7:338-47.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2006.11.005
Hine C. Connective ethnography for the exploration of e‐science. J Comput Mediat Commun 2007;12:618-34.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1083-6101.2007.00341.x
Finkelman A. Professional nursing concepts: competencies for quality leadership. 4th ed. Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett; 2017.
Lupton D. The commodification of patient opinion: the digital patient experience economy in the age of big data. Sociol Health Illn 2014;36:856-69.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9566.12109
Lupton D. The quantified self. Cambridge: Polity Press; 2016.
Johnson KB, Gadd C. Playing smallball: approaches to evaluating pilot health information exchange systems. J Biomed Inform 2007;40:S21-6.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbi.2007.08.006
Ziewitz M. Experience in action: moderating care in web-based patient feedback. Soc Sci Med 2017;175:99-108.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2016.12.028
Balogh EP, Miller BT, Ball JR, eds. Improving diagnosis in health care. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2015.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17226/21794
Freihoefer K, Kaiser L, Vonasek D, Bayramzadeh S. Setting the stage: a comparative analysis of an onstage/offstage and a linear clinic modules. HERD 2017;11:89-103.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1937586717729348
Weigl M, Müller A, Zupanc A, et al. Hospital doctors’ workflow interruptions and activities: an observation study. BMJ Qual Saf 2011;20:491-7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjqs.2010.043281
Pink S. Doing visual ethnography. London: Sage; 2013.
Atkinson P, Hammersley M. Ethnography: principles in practice. New York, NY: Routledge; 2007.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203944769
ICC/ESOMAR contents international code on market, opinion and social research and data analytics. Amsterdam: ESOMAR; 2016. Available from: https://www.esomar.org
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/rwm3.20378
Gulacti U, Lok U, Çelik M. Use of WhatsApp application for orthopedic consultations in the ED. Am J Emerg Med 2016;34:1305-7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajem.2016.04.004
Sener TE, Butticè S, Sahin B, et al. WhatsApp use in the evaluation of hematuria. Int J Med Inform 2018;111:17-23.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2017.12.011
Urry J. What we do whilst driving: towards the driverless car. In: Urry J, Grieco M, eds. Mobilities: new perspectives on transport and society. New York, NY: Routledge; 2016. pp 245-266.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315595733
Cummins S, Curtis S, Diez-Roux AV, Macintyre S. Understanding and representing “place” in health research: A relational approach. Soc Sci Med 2007;65:1825-38.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2007.05.036
Kusenbach M. Go-alongs. In: Flick U, ed. The Sage handbook of qualitative data collection. London, UK: Sage Publications; 2018. pp 344-361.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781526416070.n22
Endeley RE. End-to-end encryption in messaging services and national security – Case of WhatsApp Messenger 2018. Int J Inf Secur 2018;9:95-9.
Creswell JW. Research design: qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods approaches. 4th ed. London, UK: Sage Publications; 2014.
Whittemore R, Chase SK, Mandle CL. Validity in qualitative research. Qual Health Res 2001;11:522-37.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/104973201129119299
Supporting Agencies
Qual Roadmap, BRANDBASE, DenmarkHow to Cite
Bjørner, Thomas, and Morten Schrøder. 2019. “Advantages and Challenges of Using Mobile Ethnography in a Hospital Case Study: WhatsApp As a Method to Identify Perceptions and Practices”. Qualitative Research in Medicine and Healthcare 3 (2). https://doi.org/10.4081/qrmh.2019.7795.
PAGEPress has chosen to apply the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0) to all manuscripts to be published.