SCOPE
REVIEW PROTOCOL
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGIES IN PATIENT GUIDANCE
FOR ELECTIVE PROCEDURES:
SCOPING REVIEW PROTOCOL
TECNOLOGIAS EDUCACIONAIS NA ORIENTAÇÃO DE PACIENTES
PARA PROCEDIMENTOS ELETIVOS: PROTOCOLO DE REVISÃO DE ESCOPO
TECNOLOGÍAS EDUCATIVAS EN LA ORIENTACIÓN
DE PACIENTES PARA PROCEDIMIENTOS ELECTIVOS: PROTOCOLO DE REVISIÓN DE ALCANCE
https://doi.org/10.31011/reaid-2026-v.100-n.3-art.2624
1Lilian Esteves Lima
2Beatriz Fernandes Dias
1Universidade Federal Fluminense, Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-6839-0567
2Universidade Federal Fluminense, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4194-9509
Corresponding Author
Lilian Esteves Lima
Rua Ouro Fino, 141/301,
Cruzeiro, CEP 30310-110, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Phone: 31
99276-2277.
E-mail: liliansamubh@gmail.com
Submission: 13-08-2025
Approval: 06-03-2026
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Proper preparation for elective exams and procedures is essential to ensure care safety
and effectiveness. Educational technologies, whether digital or analog, enhance
patient guidance by expanding information reach, promoting autonomy, and
reducing preventable cancellations, contributing to more qualified and
patient-centered care. Objective: To map health education practices
mediated by technologies used to guide adult patients preparing for elective
exams or procedures in healthcare services. Method: This is a scoping
review protocol developed according to the JBI method, based on the question:
What are the educational practices, mediated by technologies, directed at
patients preparing for elective exams or procedures? The search will be
conducted in the CINAHL, Embase,
LILACS, PubMed/MEDLINE, and Scopus databases, including studies from the last ten years, with no language restrictions, that describe educational interventions aimed at
adults. Studies with undefined methodology, case reports, expert opinions, and
grey literature will be excluded. Screening
will be carried
out by two independent reviewers using Rayyan
software. Data extraction will follow a structured instrument and will be presented
in tables, graphs, and narrative synthesis. Expected
results: The review aims to identify technologies, formats, contents, and
evaluation strategies employed, contributing to the strengthening of health
education practices. Conclusion: The findings may support nursing
practice, promoting greater patient adherence to preparation guidelines,
reducing preventable cancellations, and improving care continuity and safety.
Keywords: Health Education; Educational Technology; Health Services;
Scoping Review.
RESUMO
Introdução: O preparo adequado
para exames e procedimentos eletivos
é essencial para a segurança e efetividade do cuidado.
Tecnologias educacionais, digitais ou analógicas, potencializam a orientação de
pacientes, ampliando o alcance das informações, promovendo autonomia e
reduzindo cancelamentos evitáveis, contribuindo para uma assistência mais
qualificada e centrada no paciente. Objetivo:
Mapear as práticas de educação em saúde mediadas por tecnologias utilizadas
na orientação de pacientes adultos em preparo para exames ou procedimentos
eletivos realizados em serviços de saúde. Método: Trata-se de um
protocolo de revisão de escopo, elaborado conforme o método JBI, com base na
pergunta: quais são as práticas educativas, mediadas por tecnologias,
direcionadas a pacientes em preparo
para exames ou procedimentos eletivos? A busca será conduzida
nas bases CINAHL , Embase,
LILACS, Pubmed/MEDLINE e Scopus, incluindo estudos dos últimos dez anos, sem restrição de idioma, que descrevam intervenções educativas voltadas ao público adulto. Serão excluídos estudos com
metodologia indefinida, relatos de caso, opiniões de especialistas e literatura
cinzenta. A triagem será realizada por dois revisores independentes, utilizando
o software Rayyan. Os dados extraídos seguirão instrumento estruturado e serão
apresentados em tabelas, gráficos e síntese narrativa. Resultados esperados: Espera-se identificar tecnologias,
formatos, conteúdos e estratégias de avaliação empregados, contribuindo para o
fortalecimento das práticas educativas em saúde. Conclusão: Os achados
poderão subsidiar a atuação da enfermagem, promovendo maior adesão dos
pacientes às orientações de preparo, redução de cancelamentos evitáveis e
melhoria da continuidade e segurança do cuidado.
Palavras-chave: Educação
em Saúde; Tecnologias Educacionais; Serviços de Saúde; Revisão de Escopo.
RESUMEN
Introducción: La
preparación adecuada para exámenes y procedimientos electivos es esencial para
la seguridad y efectividad de la atención. Las tecnologías educativas, digitales o analógicas, potencian la orientación a los pacientes
al ampliar el alcance de la información, promover la autonomía y reducir
cancelaciones evitables, contribuyendo a una atención más calificada y centrada
en el paciente. Objetivo: Mapear las prácticas de educación en salud
mediadas por tecnologías utilizadas en la orientación de pacientes adultos
en preparación para exámenes o procedimientos electivos
realizados en los servicios de salud. Método: Se trata de un
protocolo de revisión de alcance, elaborado conforme al método JBI, basado en
la pregunta: ¿Cuáles son las prácticas educativas, mediadas por tecnologías,
dirigidas a pacientes en preparación para exámenes o procedimientos electivos?
La búsqueda se realizará en las bases de datos CINAHL, Embase, LILACS,
PubMed/MEDLINE y Scopus, incluyendo estudios de los últimos diez años, sin
restricción de idioma, que describan intervenciones educativas dirigidas a
adultos. Se excluirán estudios con metodología indefinida, informes de casos, opiniones de expertos y literatura gris.
La selección será realizada por dos revisores independientes, utilizando el
software Rayyan. Los datos extraídos seguirán un instrumento estructurado y se presentarán en tablas, gráficos
y síntesis narrativa. Resultados esperados: Se
espera identificar tecnologías, formatos, contenidos y estrategias de
evaluación empleadas, contribuyendo al fortalecimiento de las prácticas
educativas en salud. Conclusión: Los hallazgos podrán respaldar la
práctica de enfermería, promoviendo una mayor adhesión de los pacientes a las
orientaciones de preparación, reduciendo cancelaciones evitables y mejorando la
continuidad y seguridad de la atención.
Palabras clave: Educación en Salud; Tecnologías Educativas; servicios de Salud; Revisión de Alcance.
INTRODUCTION
The Unified Health System (SUS) represents one of
Brazil's greatest social achievements, conceived under the principles of
universality, comprehensiveness, and equity. With significant advances over the
last few decades, such as the expansion of Primary Health Care, the increase in
vaccination coverage, and the implementation of policies for free access to
medicines, the system has decisively contributed to reducing historical
inequalities and guaranteeing the constitutional right to health (1).
Despite its relevance and progress, the SUS still faces
structural and operational obstacles that compromise the quality,
effectiveness, and continuity of care. Among these challenges, the following
stand out: deficiencies in the physical and technological infrastructure of
services; the unequal distribution of health professionals; limitations in
regulation and scheduling systems; and difficulties in effective communication
with users. These obstacles are aggravated by chronic underfunding, which restricts
the expansion and improvement of the supply of specialized services (2).
These conditions particularly impact the millions of
Brazilians who depend exclusively on the public healthcare system and lack the
resources to access private health insurance plans. For this population, access
to exams and procedures can be marked by long waiting periods, discontinuities
in care, and worsening of clinical conditions (3). Furthermore, the
absence of effective communication and support mechanisms between services and
users contributes to missed appointments, canceled exams, and other
cancellations, which in turn fuel a cycle of inefficiency (4).
Many of these cancellations are avoidable and result
from causes such as poorly understood guidelines, unanswered questions, travel
barriers, or failures in patient preparation (5). These situations
not only exacerbate individual suffering by prolonging diagnostic and
therapeutic time but also represent a significant social and institutional
cost, with wasted public resources and low effectiveness in filling already
limited available slots (6).
In this scenario, health education emerges as an
essential strategy to transform the user experience and optimize the use of
services. Offering clear, accessible, and contextualized information promotes
adherence to clinical guidelines, strengthens self-care, and reduces the risk
of avoidable cancellations. Furthermore, by promoting understanding and
engagement among users, educational actions contribute to safer, more
effective, and people-centered care (7).
Nursing plays a central role in this educational
process. With broad reach across health services and strong integration into
user contact points, these professionals act as educators of care, whether in
individual or group settings (8). Their mediating role contributes
to qualified listening, the translation of technical guidelines into
understandable language, and the strengthening of the bond between patients and
services (9).
The educational dimension of nursing practice can be
significantly enhanced with the use of innovative, evidence-based technologies.
Tools such as explanatory videos, applications, automated messages, and
interactive platforms broaden the reach of guidance, standardize essential
content, and promote greater user autonomy (7,9). Thus, they become
strategic allies in reducing avoidable errors and promoting more effective and
humanized care (10-11).
Given this panorama, this scoping review protocol aims
to map technology-mediated health education practices that aim to improve the
preparation of adult patients for examinations and procedures performed in
health services. The aim is to identify interventions that promote adherence to
guidelines, reduce avoidable cancellations, and strengthen the promotion of
more continuous, safe, and user-centered care.
METHOD
This scoping review protocol was developed according to
the methodological guidelines of the JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis (12)
and follows the recommendation of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic
Reviews and Meta-Analyses for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) (13)
extension, ensuring transparency, reproducibility, and quality in conducting
the study. To broaden access and promote open science, the protocol was
registered on the Open Science Framework (OSF) platform and is publicly
available via DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/6X2H3. As it is a review protocol, the study
received exemption from analysis by a Research Ethics Committee.
The research question was constructed based on the
Population, Concept, and Context (PCC) strategy, which guides the definition of
broad and exploratory scopes. The question defined to guide the investigation
was: What are the health education practices, mediated by technologies,
directed at patients preparing for examinations or procedures performed in
health services?
Inclusion Criteria
Studies addressing health education practices, mediated
by digital or analog technologies, aimed at preparing adult patients (over 18
years of age) will be included.
Referred for examinations or procedures at healthcare
facilities. Eligible publications include peer-reviewed scientific papers,
technical reports, official guidelines, systematic or scoping reviews, as well
as empirical studies with complete data, published in the last ten years. There
will be no language restrictions. Studies without a clear methodology, case
reports, expert opinions, and grey literature will be excluded.
Research Strategy
The search strategy will be carried out in three
complementary stages, aiming to ensure broad and consistent coverage of
available evidence. The first stage will involve a preliminary search in the
MEDLINE/PubMed database to identify controlled descriptors and keywords
relevant to the topic. Subsequently, a systematic search will be conducted in
the MEDLINE (via PubMed), LILACS, Scopus, CINAHL, and EMBASE databases,
accessed through the researcher's institution's portal using the Federated
Academic Community (CAFe). The third stage comprises the analysis of the
reference lists of the included studies, with a view to identifying potentially
relevant additional sources.
The development of search strategies will follow five
methodological steps: extraction, conversion, combination, construction, and
use (14). Initially, keywords will be identified (extraction), which
will later be adapted to the controlled vocabularies and specific syntaxes of
each database (conversion). Then, the terms will be combined using Boolean and
truncation operators (combination), resulting in the elaboration of the final
equations (construction) and application to the respective sources of evidence
(use). The preliminary search equations adapted for each database are detailed
in Table 1.
Selection of evidence sources
The process of selecting evidence sources will follow a
systematic and transparent flow, according to the defined eligibility criteria.
Initially, all results obtained from the databases will be exported to the
Rayyan software, which will allow for the automatic identification and removal
of duplicates. In the next step, the studies will be screened by two
independent reviewers, based on reading the titles and abstracts. Disagreements
between reviewers will be resolved by a third reviewer, ensuring the impartiality
and methodological rigor of the selection.
Studies that meet the inclusion criteria will proceed
to full-text reading, with detailed content analysis. The entire selection
process will be rigorously documented and presented through a flowchart in
accordance with the PRISMA-ScR guidelines (12).
Data Extraction
Data extraction will be conducted by two independent
reviewers using a structured instrument that will include the following
variables: author and year of publication, country of origin of the study,
objective, population and context, type of educational technology used,
methodology for developing and validating the intervention, educational
content, outcomes assessed (such as reduction in cancellations, adherence to
preparation, and patient satisfaction), main results, and conclusions.
In case of disagreements between reviewers during
extraction, the differences will be resolved by consensus or, if necessary,
with the participation of a third reviewer, ensuring greater methodological
rigor, analytical coherence, and reliability in data collection.
Data Analysis and Presentation
The synthesis of the extracted data will be conducted
through narrative analysis, with the presentation of results in tables, charts,
and/or graphs, according to the nature of the evidence. The organization of the
information will seek to map the characteristics of the studies, the
educational technologies used, and the main outcomes observed.
The analysis will be guided by the alignment between
the findings, the objectives of the review, and the research question, ensuring
coherence and scientific relevance. To facilitate the communication of results,
the data may be systematized in visual representations that promote clarity,
accessibility, and critical interpretation.
EXPECTED RESULTS
This review is expected to comprehensively map the
available evidence on the use of educational technologies in guiding adult
patients in preparation for examinations and procedures. Analysis of the
studies will identify the most frequently used technologies (such as videos,
apps, messaging, and interactive brochures), the content primarily addressed,
and the effectiveness indicators analyzed, such as adherence, patient
satisfaction, and reduction in cancellations.
CONCLUSION
This protocol offers a rigorous, transparent, and
coherent methodological basis, allowing for the identification of
technology-mediated educational practices that can be easily integrated to
routine care. The findings may support the development of efficient
technological tools, based on scientific research, that can be incorporated
into nursing work and the management processes of health services. Ultimately,
this approach aims to contribute to safer, more continuous, and user-centered
care, filling crucial gaps in preparation for examinations and procedures
performed in health services.
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Funding:
The research received no funding.
Conflict of interest statement:
None to declare.
Data availability statement: No datasets were
generated in this study. The information presented is described in the body of
the article.
Authorship criteria (author contributions):
Lilian Esteves Lima: Study conception and planning;
writing, critical review, and final approval. Beatriz Fernandes Dias: Writing, critical review, and
final approval.
Scientific Editor: Ítalo Arão Pereira Ribeiro. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0778-1447
Rev Enferm Atual In
Derme 2026;100(3): e026032
