scholarly journals What makes a mobile app successful in supporting health behaviour change?

2016 ◽  
Vol 76 (3) ◽  
pp. 373-381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Fitzgerald ◽  
Tracy McClelland
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Behaviour Change ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Behavioural Change ◽  
Health Behaviours ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Design Stage ◽  
The Public ◽  
Health Practitioners ◽  
Screening And Identification

Introduction: Health promotion apps designed to support and reinforce health behaviours or to reduce risk behaviours are the most commonly downloaded apps. Such technologies have the potential to reach and deliver health care to new populations. But the extent to which they are successful in enabling the adoption of new and desired behaviours can vary. Some apps are more effective than others, some are free to download while others require a nominal or substantial charge. Cost alone is not indicative of quality or effectiveness. This is important because the use of health apps by the public will likely increase, as is the expectation that health care professionals understand this technology and its heuristic role in personalised health. Practitioners therefore need to be better informed regarding what makes a health app appealing to service users and successful as an intervention to facilitate behaviour change. Objective: This paper describes and discusses how the structure and content of health care apps can facilitate or inhibit behavioural change. The aim is to support practitioners in the screening and identification of suitable apps for clinical use. Method: Theory and literature review. Conclusion: App content that involved clinician input at the design stage and included internal drivers such as motivation, self-efficacy and illness understanding and external drivers such as illness information, social networking and user compatibility tend to do better in facilitating behaviour change than those that do not. Of these factors, motivation is considered to be the most important.

Digital Diabetes Care System Observations from a market acceptance evaluation study in Vietnam (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tran Quang Khanh ◽  
Pham Nhu Hao ◽  
Eytan Roitman ◽  
Baruch Marganitt ◽  
Avivit Cahn
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Blood Glucose ◽  
Health Care Professional ◽  
Diabetes Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Physician Satisfaction ◽  
Diabetes Clinic ◽  
Blood Glucose Monitor ◽  
Hba1c Levels

BACKGROUND Digital technologies are gaining an important role in the management of patients with diabetes. The GlucoMe solution integrates multiple aspects of diabetes care: 1) Wireless blood glucose monitor - communicates glucose data automatically to any smartphone; 2) Mobile-app - securely transmits real-time blood glucose monitor data for cloud based analyses, and enables 2-way communication between patients and health care professionals; 3) Digital diabetes clinic – analyzes and presents data to the health care professional; and 4) Control tower software provides population management reports and sends individualized alerts. OBJECTIVE Assess clinical outcomes and user satisfaction of incorporating the GlucoMe digital solution in diabetes clinics of a developing country. METHODS Five hospital endocrinology clinics in Vietnam participated in a market acceptance evaluation pilot of the GlucoMe system. The clinics sequentially recruited all patients willing to join, so long as they had a smartphone and access to internet connectivity. Patients were provided with the GlucoMe app and blood glucose monitor and instructed in their use in individual or groups sessions. The digital diabetes clinic and control tower software were installed in the clinic computers. Face-to-face visits were conducted at baseline and at 12 weeks, with monthly digital visits scheduled in the interim and additional digital visits performed as needed. HbA1c levels were measured at baseline and at 12 weeks (±20 days). Treatment modification was at the discretion of the treating physician. Outcome measures included adherence to glucose monitoring, change in glycemic parameters and patient and physician satisfaction as assessed by questionnaires. Only patients completing the pilot were included in data analyses. RESULTS The study recruited 300 patients of whom 279 patients completed the evaluation. Dropout was due to change in internet access availability (18) or death (3). Adherence to glucose measurements gradually declined, yet, at study end 81% of the patients were measuring glucose at least once a week. Digital contact from the health care professional to the patient or vice-versa (excluding automated alerts) occurred in average every 6.2 days. Average glucose levels declined from 170.4±64.6 mg/dl in the first two weeks to 150.8±53.2 mg/dl in the last two weeks (P<0.001) (n=221). HbA1c levels at baseline and 12 weeks were available for only 126 of the patients and declined from 8.3±1.9% to 7.6±1.3 (P<0.001). Over 95% of the physicians and patients stated they would strongly support the broad usage of the GlucoMe platform in diabetes clinics across the country. CONCLUSIONS The GlucoMe digital solution was broadly accepted by both patients and health care professionals and improved glycemic outcomes. The digital platform yielded increased number of patient-health care professional interactions, yet of short duration, enabling judicious allocation of limited time resources. The durability, scalability and cost-effectiveness of this approach merit further study.

A Dutchman in London: reflections of a hospital chief executive from the Netherlands in the NHS

BMJ Leader ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. leader-2021-000509
Author(s):  
Marcel Levi
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Chief Executive ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
British Society ◽  
The Public ◽  
Interesting Insight ◽  
Clinical Point ◽  
High Level

BackgroundThe NHS is a fascinating health care system and is enjoying a lot of support from all layers of British society. However, it is clear that the system has excellent features but also areas that can be improved.Story of selfA number of years as a chief executive in one of London’s largest hospital has brought me a wealth of impressions, experiences, and understanding about working in the NHS. Contrasting those to my previous experience as chief executive in Amsterdam (The Netherlands) provides an interesting insight.ObservationsVery strong features of the NHS are the high level of health care professionals, the focus on quality and safety, and involvement of patients and the public. However, the NHS can significantly improve by addressing the lack of clinical professionals in the lead, curtailing ever increasing bureaucracy, and reducing its peculiar preference for outsourcing even the most crucial activities to private parties. The frequent inability to swiftly and successfully complete goal-directed negotiations as well as the large but from a clinical point of view irrelevant private sector are areas of sustained bewilderment. Lastly, the drive for innovation and transformation as well as the level of biomedical research in the NHS and supported by the British universities is fascinating and outstanding.

scholarly journals Differences in Perceptions of Health Information Between the Public and Health Care Professionals: Nonprobability Sampling Questionnaire Survey (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anat Gesser-Edelsburg ◽  
Nour Abed Elhadi Shahbari ◽  
Ricky Cohen ◽  
Adva Mir Halavi ◽  
Rana Hijazi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
New Media ◽  
Health Information ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Questionnaire Survey ◽  
General Public ◽  
The Public ◽  
Search For Information

BACKGROUND In the new media age, the public searches for information both online and offline. Many studies have examined how the public reads and understands this information but very few investigate how people assess the quality of journalistic articles as opposed to information generated by health professionals. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to examine how public health care workers (HCWs) and the general public seek, read, and understand health information and to investigate the criteria by which they assess the quality of journalistic articles. METHODS A Web-based nonprobability sampling questionnaire survey was distributed to Israeli HCWs and members of the public via 3 social media outlets: Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram. A total of 979 respondents participated in the online survey via the Qualtrics XM platform. RESULTS The findings indicate that HCWs find academic articles more reliable than do members of the general public (44.4% and 28.4%, respectively, P<.001). Within each group, we found disparities between the places where people search for information and the sources they consider reliable. HCWs consider academic articles to be the most reliable, yet these are not their main information sources. In addition, HCWs often use social networks to search for information (18.2%, P<.001), despite considering them very unreliable (only 2.2% found them reliable, P<.001). The same paradoxes were found among the general public, where 37.5% (P<.001) seek information via social networks yet only 8.4% (P<.001) find them reliable. Out of 6 quality criteria, 4 were important both to HCWs and to the general public. CONCLUSIONS In the new media age where information is accessible to all, the quality of articles about health is of critical importance. It is important that the criteria examined in this research become the norm in health writing for all stakeholders who write about health, whether they are professional journalists or citizen journalists writing in the new media.

Appropriate Technology in Primary Health Care: Evolution and Meaning of WHO's Concept

1989 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Cohen
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Appropriate Technology ◽  
World Health ◽  
Health Maintenance ◽  
The Public ◽  
Primary Health ◽  
Careful Scrutiny ◽  
The World ◽  
Definition Of

This article examines the meaning of appropriate technology in the World Health Organization's comprehensive definition of primary care. The author concludes that broad-ranging aspects of health maintenance, such as public health, personal lifestyles, and scientific research, as well as traditional diagnostic and therapeutic practices, need to be subjected to clear and careful scrutiny. It is vital that the results of these technology assessment studies be disseminated as widely as possible to both health care professionals and the public.

scholarly journals The Dimensions of Tokenism in Patient and Family Engagement: A Concept Analysis of the Literature

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 1610-1620
Author(s):  
Umair Majid
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
International Association ◽  
Concept Analysis ◽  
Service Planning ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Power Relationships ◽  
Health Service Planning ◽  
The Public ◽  
Professional Goals

Patient engagement (PE) has become embedded in discussions about health service planning and quality improvement, and the goal has been to find ways to observe the potential beneficial outcomes associated with PE. Patients and health care professionals use various terms to depict PE, for example, partnership and collaboration. Similarly, tokenism is consistently used to describe PE that has gone wrong. There is a lack of clarity, however, on the meanings and implications of tokenism on PE activities. The objective of this concept analysis was to examine the peer-reviewed and gray literature that has discussed tokenism to identify how we currently understand and use the concept. This review discusses 4 dimensions of tokenism: unequal power, limited impact, ulterior motives, and opposite of meaningful PE. These dimensions explicate the different components, meanings, and implications of tokenism in PE practice. The findings of this review emphasize how tokenism is primarily perceived as negative by supporters of PE, but this attribution depends on patients’ preferences for engagement. In addition, this review compares the dimensions of tokenism with the levels of engagement in the International Association of the Public Participation spectrum. This review suggests that there are 2 gradations of tokenism; while tokenism represents unequal power relationships in favor of health care professionals, this may lead to either limited or no meaningful change or change that is primarily aligned with the personal and professional goals of clinicians, managers, and decision-makers.

scholarly journals The Mobile App Development and Assessment Guide (MAG): Delphi-Based Validity Study (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pere Llorens-Vernet ◽  
Jordi Miró
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Mobile Health ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
End Users ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Health Apps ◽  
App Development ◽  
Mobile Health Apps

BACKGROUND In recent years, there has been an exponential growth of mobile health (mHealth)–related apps. This has occurred in a somewhat unsupervised manner. Therefore, having a set of criteria that could be used by all stakeholders to guide the development process and the assessment of the quality of the apps is of most importance. OBJECTIVE The aim of this paper is to study the validity of the Mobile App Development and Assessment Guide (MAG), a guide recently created to help stakeholders develop and assess mobile health apps. METHODS To conduct a validation process of the MAG, we used the Delphi method to reach a consensus among participating stakeholders. We identified 158 potential participants: 45 patients as potential end users, 41 health care professionals, and 72 developers. We sent participants an online survey and asked them to rate how important they considered each item in the guide to be on a scale from 0 to 10. Two rounds were enough to reach consensus. RESULTS In the first round, almost one-third (n=42) of those invited participated, and half of those (n=24) also participated in the second round. Most items in the guide were found to be important to a quality mHealth-related app; a total of 48 criteria were established as important. “Privacy,” “security,” and “usability” were the categories that included most of the important criteria. CONCLUSIONS The data supports the validity of the MAG. In addition, the findings identified the criteria that stakeholders consider to be most important. The MAG will help advance the field by providing developers, health care professionals, and end users with a valid guide so that they can develop and identify mHealth-related apps that are of quality.

scholarly journals The Mobile App Development and Assessment Guide (MAG): Delphi-Based Validity Study

10.2196/17760 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. e17760 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pere Llorens-Vernet ◽  
Jordi Miró
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Mobile Health ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
End Users ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Health Apps ◽  
App Development ◽  
Mobile Health Apps

Background In recent years, there has been an exponential growth of mobile health (mHealth)–related apps. This has occurred in a somewhat unsupervised manner. Therefore, having a set of criteria that could be used by all stakeholders to guide the development process and the assessment of the quality of the apps is of most importance. Objective The aim of this paper is to study the validity of the Mobile App Development and Assessment Guide (MAG), a guide recently created to help stakeholders develop and assess mobile health apps. Methods To conduct a validation process of the MAG, we used the Delphi method to reach a consensus among participating stakeholders. We identified 158 potential participants: 45 patients as potential end users, 41 health care professionals, and 72 developers. We sent participants an online survey and asked them to rate how important they considered each item in the guide to be on a scale from 0 to 10. Two rounds were enough to reach consensus. Results In the first round, almost one-third (n=42) of those invited participated, and half of those (n=24) also participated in the second round. Most items in the guide were found to be important to a quality mHealth-related app; a total of 48 criteria were established as important. “Privacy,” “security,” and “usability” were the categories that included most of the important criteria. Conclusions The data supports the validity of the MAG. In addition, the findings identified the criteria that stakeholders consider to be most important. The MAG will help advance the field by providing developers, health care professionals, and end users with a valid guide so that they can develop and identify mHealth-related apps that are of quality.

scholarly journals The Increasing Interest in Antibiotic Stewardship Programs

2020 ◽  
pp. 8-12
Author(s):  
Nehad J. Ahmed ◽  
Mohd. F. Khan
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Antibiotic Stewardship ◽  
Antibiotic Use ◽  
Google Trends ◽  
Prescribing Patterns ◽  
Resistant Organism ◽  
High Morbidity ◽  
Search Term ◽  
The Public

Background: The inappropriate use of antibiotics leads to many adverse effects and also leads to bacterial resistance. A hospital-based program, commonly referred to as antibiotic stewardship programs, is used to improve the usage of antibiotics. This study aims to explore the increasing interest of the public in antibiotic stewardship programs by using data from Google Trends and Twitter. Methodology: A search trends feature that shows how frequently a given search term is entered into Google’s search engine (Google Trends) and a social network site (Twitter) were used. Results: The public and the health care professionals are now more interested in antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance due to the development of more severe infections that were caused by bacteria resisted to many antibiotics which lead to high morbidity and mortality rates. Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of infections caused by multi-drug resistant organism that could lead to more mortality and morbidity rates, as a result the interest in antimicrobial stewardship programs in internet is increased. So it is important to increase the knowledge of health care professionals regarding the appropriate antibiotic use and to encourage them to change their unsuitable prescribing patterns.

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