scholarly journals Qualitative Assessment of the Feasibility, Usability, and Acceptability of a Mobile Client Data App for Community-Based Maternal, Neonatal, and Child Care in Rural Ghana

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica D. Rothstein ◽  
Larissa Jennings ◽  
Anitha Moorthy ◽  
Fan Yang ◽  
Lisa Gee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Workers ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Qualitative Assessment ◽  
District Health ◽  
Mobile Client ◽  
Rural Ghana ◽  
Frontline Health Workers ◽  
Client Data

Mobile phone applications may enhance the delivery of critical health services and the accuracy of health service data. Yet, the opinions and experiences of frontline health workers on using mobile apps to track pregnant and recently delivered women are underreported. This evaluation qualitatively assessed the feasibility, usability, and acceptability of a mobile Client Data App for maternal, neonatal, and child client data management by community health nurses (CHNs) in rural Ghana. The mobile app enabled CHNs to enter, summarize, and query client data. It also sent visit reminders for clients and provided a mechanism to report level of care to district officers. Fourteen interviews and two focus groups with CHNs, midwives, and district health officers were conducted, coded, and thematically analyzed. Results indicated that the app was easily integrated into care, improved CHN productivity, and was acceptable due to its capacity to facilitate client follow-up, data reporting, and decision-making. However, the feasibility and usability of the app were hindered by high client volumes, staff shortages, and software and device challenges. Successful integration of mobile client data apps for frontline health workers in rural and resource-poor settings requires real-time monitoring, program investments, and targeted changes in human resources.

scholarly journals Feasibility and Effectiveness of Mobile App for Active Case Finding for Tuberculosis in India

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weijia Zhang ◽  
Mariam E. Dogar ◽  
Monika Jain ◽  
Edwin Rodriges ◽  
Sangeeta Pathak ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Workers ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Case Finding ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Low Grade ◽  
Active Case Finding ◽  
Mobile Data Collection ◽  
Active Case ◽  
Slum Areas

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease with 2.8 million cases and 480,000 deaths each year in India. The city of Indore alone with a population of 3.5 million had 7,839 identified TB cases in 2017. However, about two to three thousand additional cases remain unidentified per district officials. The unidentified cases lead to an endemic TB and hamper the efforts of organizations such as The Collaborative to Eliminate TB from India (CETI) to reduce the incidence of TB with the method of Active Case Finding (ACF).1 Previously, 1,332 mobile apps attempted to use technology to overcome the challenge of unreported TB patients in Indian slum areas due to the inaccurate, lost, or unhelpful data collected in ACF; yet the existing apps for TB prevention and treatment possessed minimal functionality. Over a period of 3 months, the CETI developed a mobile data collection app to generate a TB diagnostic survey and to collect data from patient registration form. Methods: To study the feasibility and effectiveness of the app, a pilot survey was conducted of 163,496 homes covering a population of 828,020 in the slum areas of Indore and Bhopal. Findings: Between the years of 2018 and 2019, 14,349 pulmonary suspected cases and 4,357 extra pulmonary suspected cases of TB were identified. Among the total of 18,706 cases identified, 7,756 patients (48.1%) had low-grade fever for over 2 weeks, 6,331 patients (39.2%) had persistent cough for more than 2 weeks, 7,693 patients (47.7%) had weight loss, and 251 patients (1.6%) had cough with blood. Interpretation: This pilot experience shows that an app is a useful tool for TB case recording and follow-up in the field. Further training of the health workers, and more widespread availability and ease of use of mobile phones will be necessary.

scholarly journals Toward Designs of Workplace Stress Management Mobile Apps for Frontline Health Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond: Design Implications for a Mixed Methods Qualitative Study (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beenish Moalla Chaudhry ◽  
Ashraful Islam ◽  
Monica Matthieu
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Coping Strategies ◽  
Stress Management ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Workplace Stressors ◽  
Frontline Health Workers ◽  
Google Search ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND In recent years, mobile apps have been developed to prevent burnout, promote anxiety management, and provide health education to workers in various workplace settings. However, there remains a paucity of such apps for frontline health workers (FHWs), even though FHWs are the most susceptible to stress due to the nature of their jobs. OBJECTIVE The goal of this study was to provide suggestions for designing stress management apps to address workplace stressors of FHWs based on the understanding of their needs from FHWs’ own perspectives and theories of stress. METHODS A mixed methods qualitative study was conducted. Using a variety of search strings, we first collected 41 relevant web-based news articles published between December 2019 and May 2020 through the Google search engine. We then conducted a cross-sectional survey with 20 FHWs. Two researchers independently conducted qualitative analysis of all the collected data using a deductive followed by an inductive approach. RESULTS Prevailing uncertainty and fear of contracting the infection was causing stress among FHWs. Moral injury associated with seeing patients die from lack of care and lack of experience in handling various circumstances were other sources of stress. FHWs mentioned 4 coping strategies. Quick coping strategies such as walking away from stressful situations, entertainment, and exercise were the most common ways to mitigate the impact of stress at work. Peer support and counseling services were other popular methods. Building resilience and driving oneself forward using internal motivation were also meaningful ways of overcoming stressful situations. Time constraints and limited management support prevented FHWs from engaging in stress management activities. CONCLUSIONS Our study identified stressors, coping strategies, and challenges with applying coping strategies that can guide the design of stress management apps for FHWs. Given that the pandemic is ongoing and health care crises continue, FHWs remain a vulnerable population in need of attention.

scholarly journals Feasibility of Virtual Reality based Training for Optimising COVID-19 Case Handling in Uganda

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Buyego ◽  
Elizabeth Katwesigye ◽  
Grace Kebirungi ◽  
Mike Nsubuga ◽  
Shirley Nakyejwe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Graphics Processing Units ◽  
Medical Training ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Qualitative Assessment ◽  
Infection Prevention And Control ◽  
P Value ◽  
High Morbidity ◽  
Information Retention ◽  
Frontline Health Workers

Abstract BackgroundEpidemics and pandemics are causing high morbidity and mortality on a still-evolving scale exemplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. Infection prevention and control (IPC) training for frontline health workers is thus essential. However, classroom or hospital ward based training portends an infection risk due to the in-person interaction of participants. We explored the use of Virtual Reality (VR) simulations for frontline health worker training since it trains participants without exposing them to infections that would arise from in-person training. It does away with the requirement for expensive Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that has been in acute shortage and improves learning, retention and recall. This represents the first attempt in deploying VR-based pedagogy in a Ugandan medical education context.MethodsWe used animated VR-based simulations of bedside and ward-based training scenarios for frontline health workers. The training covered the wearing and stripping of PPE, case management of COVID-19 infected individuals and hand hygiene. It used VR headsets and Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) to actualize an immersive experience, via a hybrid of VR renditions and 360degrees videos. We then compared the level of knowledge acquisition between individuals trained using this method to comparable cohorts previously trained in a classroom setting. That evaluation was supplemented by a qualitative assessment based on feedback from participants about their experience.ResultsThe effort resulted into a well-designed COVID-19 IPC VR curriculum, equivalent VR content and a pioneer cohort of trained frontline health workers. The formalized comparison with classroom-trained cohorts showed relatively better outcomes by way of skills acquired, speed of learning and rates of information retention (P-value =4.0e-09) - suggesting the effectiveness and feasibility of VR as a medium of medical training. Additionally, in the qualitative assessment 90% of the participants rated the method as very good, 58.1% strongly agreed that the activities met the course objectives, and 97.7 % strongly indicated willingness to refer the course to colleagues. ConclusionVR-based COVID-19 IPC training is feasible, effective and achieves enhanced learning while protecting participants from infections within a pandemic context in Uganda. It is a delivery medium transferable to the contexts of other highly infectious diseases.

Title: End user experience of Hayat app and dashboard: qualitative assessment of usability, community engagement and validity of data for antenatal care provision and routine immunization in rural Pakistan and Afghanistan (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hasan Nawaz Tahir ◽  
Shehla Zaidi ◽  
Atif Riaz ◽  
Afreen Sadia ◽  
Rabia Najmi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health System ◽  
Technology Acceptance ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Community Response ◽  
World Health ◽  
Qualitative Assessment ◽  
Child Health Services ◽  
End User ◽  
Frontline Health Workers

BACKGROUND An mHealth app was developed for front line health workers, to strengthen maternal, neonatal and child health services through increased transparency, accountability, and improved governance by collecting and disseminating real-time data. Key features included tracking frontline health workers through Global Positioning System during outreach visits, registration of clients; and recording data. OBJECTIVE In this paper we report the end user experiences of the captured during the qualitative end line study of the Hayat app. This includes perceptions and experience of the using the digital app with a focus on usability, validity of data, and community response. This paper aims to identify barriers and enablers to integration of mhealth and inform how digital technology can be utilized for strengthening the district health systems in LMICs. METHODS Qualitative assessment was carried out in select rural districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan and select catchments of Bamyan and in Badakshan Province in Afghanistan. Methods used for assessment included 17 focus group discussions with LHWs and 28 key informant interviews with health workers and key stakeholders. Thematic content analysis was undertaken based on an adapted framework derived from the World Health Organization guide for “Monitoring and Evaluating Digital Health Interventions” and technology acceptance model. RESULTS The study revealed high usability of the app both by the stakeholders. Overall, the app improved quality and timeliness of data, improved immunization coverage and maternal care through supportive supervision and monitoring of frontline health workers. Data validity improved and health managers were confident of the reliability of data collected through the app. However, connectivity issues, difficulty in access to remote sites, security issues, lack of incentives and increased workload were some of the perceived barriers identified by the end users. CONCLUSIONS The use of smart phone-based application has high acceptability among the HCPs, and has benefitted the existing health system functioning but providing reliable data, and better monitoring. However, successful integration of app in the health system will require inter sectorial collaboration to address the challenges identified in implementation. CLINICALTRIAL N/A

scholarly journals Understanding mobile application development and implementation for monitoring Posyandu data in Indonesia: a 3-year hybrid action study to build “a bridge” from the community to the national scale

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fedri Ruluwedrata Rinawan ◽  
Ari Indra Susanti ◽  
Indah Amelia ◽  
Mulya Nurmansyah Ardisasmita ◽  
Widarti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
National Level ◽  
Hybrid Approach ◽  
Data Entry ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Wilcoxon Test ◽  
Limited Information ◽  
Application Development

Abstract Background Limited information is available on how mobile health (mHealth) application (app) technology on mother and child health (MCH) is developed. This research aimed (a) to explore the process of developing mobile apps for MCH community-based services in the Indonesian setting of Pos Pelayanan Terpadu (Posyandu/Integrated Health Service Post), (b) to determine the feasibility of using the app by community health workers (CHWs), and (c) to evaluate the scalability of the mobile app at the national level in Indonesia. Methods A hybrid method was used to synergistically combine the action research principles and mixed methods comprising qualitative and quantitative methods. This study was conducted in the Pasawahan District, Purwakarta, Indonesia, from 2017 to 2019. Content analysis, coding, and categorizing were performed using NVivo 12 Pro for transcribed data. The Wilcoxon test (2018 and 2019) was conducted using STATA 15 Special Edition. Results (1) The use of a CHW notebook for data entry into the Posyandu Information System book delayed the data reporting process, resulting in the need to develop a mobile app. (2) There were significant differences in CHWs’ knowledge (p = 0.000) and skills (p = 0.0097) on training (2018) and Posyandu phases (2019). (3) A total of 964 Posyandu have been registered in the Posyandu mobile app from almost all provinces in Indonesia. Conclusions The three-year hybrid approach includes the crucial phases that are necessary to develop a mobile app that is more user-friendly and can act as a substitute for CHWs’ book. Hence, its implementation is promising for use at the national level.

The efficiency of Developing Mobile Applications Support Diabetes Mellitus Type 2 Self-management: A Systematic Literature Review of Recent Articles, Meta-analysis and Qualitative Assessment (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maryam Mahabadi
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Systematic Literature Review ◽  
Mobile Applications ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Health Technology ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Qualitative Assessment ◽  
Self Management

BACKGROUND Applying health technologies, such as mobile applications (apps), is considered as a means of promoting health management. This research aimed to examine the consideration of developing mobile applications (apps), support diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM-2) self-management, via investigating the outcome of original articles. OBJECTIVE (1) To indicate the extend which mobile app developers considered features and specifications defined by the health technology guidelines. (2) To identify the bottlenecks of health technology guidelines by assessing and comparing them. (3) To provide a list of evidence-based recommendations for manufacturers in order to design and develop as well as verify the health mobile apps. METHODS This research is a combination of systematic literature review and meta-analysis as well as qualitative assessment. The systematic literature review and meta-analysis included the articles published within the last six years, to indicate time-related reliability to the content, indexed on Ovid, Embase, Engendering Village, and PubMed. In order to conduct a meta-analysis, the information derived from included articles was adopted in a framework made of qualitative assessment of the well-known health technology guidelines. These guidelines were published by The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), World Health Organisation (WHO), Public Health England and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). RESULTS After filtering all articles via a PRISMA flowchart, 37 articles were selected for further investigations. The results of the systematic literature review and meta-analysis indicated that almost all articles reported the significant role of apps in improving the health status of the users. Majority of studies were clinical trials conducted to measure the outcomes of interventions using a known mobile app. Technology-related limitations were having access to a smartphone and mobile markets, technology literacy, and malfunction of the systems. Combination of recommendations provided by included articles was conducting further studies with larger sample size to determine barriers and facilitators of available technologies integrated with mobile apps, aimed to provide patient-centred services, in a longer duration of the intervention implementation. On the other hand, the majority of articles did not report the use of any particular guideline. However, by comparing their findings with the results of the qualitative assessment of selected health technology guidelines, evidence-based documents were scarcely reported. Likewise, only a few numbers of articles briefly discussed cost-effectiveness. Almost none of them used an approved tool for evaluating the economic effect of mobile apps. CONCLUSIONS The majority of publications indicated lack of proper adherence to guidelines in designing and examining mobile applications, developed for supporting DM-2 self-management. Furthermore, a comparison of four included guidelines indicated insufficiencies in some perspectives such as safety of recorded information. The list of recommendations, produced by the results of included articles and highlights of included guidelines, facilitates producing standard mobile health apps by manufacturers.

India Goes Digital..Smartphone is the New Shopping Destination

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (8) ◽  
pp. 289
Author(s):  
Shankar Chaudhary
Keyword(s):  
Online Shopping ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Smart Phone ◽  
Mobile Commerce ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Smart Phones ◽  
The Internet ◽  
The World ◽  
Shopping Experience ◽  
User Friendly

Despite being in nascent stage m-commerce is gaining momentum in India. The explosive growth of smart-phone users has made India much loved business destination for whole world. Indian internet user is becoming the second largest in the world next to China surpassing US, which throws open plenty of e-commerce opportunities, not only for Indian players, offshore players as well. Mobile commerce is likely to overtake e-commerce in the next few years, spurred by the continued uptrend in online shopping and increasing use of mobile apps.The optimism comes from the fact that people accessing the Internet through their mobiles had jumped 33 per cent in 2014 to 173 million and is expected to grow 21 per cent year-on-year till 2019 to touch 457 million. e-Commerce brands are eyeing on the mobile app segment by developing user-friendly and secure mobile apps offering a risk-free and easy shopping experience to its users. Budget 4G smart phones coupled with affordable plans, can very well drive 4G growth in India.

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