Factors influencing the intention to use “Internet+Nursing Service” among enterostomy patients based on an extended UTAUT2 model

The "Internet+Nursing Service" currently being piloted in China has created a new opportunity for home-based enterostomy patients to obtain professional care support. However, whether this service can play a role largely depends on whether patients use it. In this study, we established an integrated model based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2(UTAUT2) with the addition of 2 variables, initial trust and perceived risk, to explore factors that may influence enterostomy patients' intention to use "Internet+Nursing Service". An analysis of survey data from 301 enterostomy patients using structural equation modeling revealed that performance expectancy, social influence, price value and initial trust were significant, positive direct predictors of usage intention. Further cross‑sectional mediation analysis suggested that initial trust partially mediated the relationship between performance expectancy and usage intention and between social influence and usage intention. Furthermore, perceived risk had no significant direct effect on usage intention but had a significant indirect effect through initial trust, suggesting full mediation in our model. This study expands the application scenarios of UTAUT2 in the field of health care consumption, and its empirical findings provide preliminary insights that may inform the implementation and promotion of "Internet+Nursing Service" in similar settings.