In Search of Mobile Health Apps Available for Pregnant Women: Qualitative Study (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriela Frid ◽  
Kelly Bogaert ◽  
Katherine Chen
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Scoring System ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Pregnancy And Childbirth ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Mobile Health Apps ◽  
Google Search

BACKGROUND Many pregnant women use the internet to obtain information about pregnancy and childbirth. Over 50% of pregnant women use pregnancy applications (apps) and must search through thousands of pregnancy or women’s health-related apps available on app stores. COVID-19 is changing how women receive prenatal care and their satisfaction with it, leading them to rely more on other sources of information. OBJECTIVE Our objective is to identify mobile apps recommended when a Google search is performed and to evaluate the apps’ features using a modified APPLICATIONS scoring system.  METHODS A list of pregnancy apps was identified in the first 20 Google search results using the search term “pregnancy app” and “pregnancy apps.” After excluding apps irrelevant to the study, all unique apps were downloaded and evaluated with the modified APPLICATION scoring system, which includes both objective and subjective criteria and evaluation of special features.  RESULTS A total of 57 unique pregnancy apps were generated. 28 apps were excluded for irrelevance, inaccuracy, malfunctioning, or no longer available. 29 apps were evaluated, with a mean score of 9.4 points out of a maximum of 16. The highest scoring app scored 15 points. The top five highest scoring apps were all included in the first article in a Google search result and four of them were also the highest mentioned among all articles. CONCLUSIONS Identification of pregnancy apps through a Google search yielded high-scoring apps that were mentioned in multiple articles, yet few contain all the desired qualities. While healthcare providers should continue to vet apps before recommending them to patients, these findings highlight that a Google search is a successful way for patients and providers to find useful and comprehensive pregnancy applications.

scholarly journals Sources of information and the use of mobile applications for health and parenting information during pregnancy: Implications for health promotion

2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 146045822110431
Author(s):  
Limin Buchanan ◽  
Emi Anderson ◽  
Huilan Xu MBiostat ◽  
Philayrath Phongsavan ◽  
Chris Rissel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Mobile Applications ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Smart Devices ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Telephone Surveys ◽  
Randomised Controlled ◽  
Willingness To Use

This study aims to examine the characteristics of pregnant women who used and intended to use mobile applications (apps) for health and parenting information. We used data from a randomised controlled trial, Communicating Healthy Beginnings Advice by Telephone (CHAT), conducted in Australia. Telephone surveys were conducted in 2017 to collect information on women’s demographic characteristics, sources of health and parenting information and willingness to use mobile apps. Multiple logistic regression was used to examine the associations of women’s socio-demographic backgrounds, their mobile apps usage and their willingness to use such apps. Data included 1155 pregnant women in their third trimester. Women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and with lower income appeared to have lower uptake of mobile apps despite high ownership of smart devices. Development of evidence-based and culturally-adapted mobile apps represent an important opportunity for healthcare providers to optimise maternal and birth outcomes.

Pregnancy-related health information behaviour of Estonian women

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kadri Ojaperv ◽  
Sirje Virkus
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Maternity Hospital ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Pregnancy And Childbirth ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Search For Information

Purpose This study aims to increase the understanding of the pregnancy-related information behavior (IB) of pregnant women in Estonia. Design/methodology/approach The research involved a quantitative research methodology consisting of a semi-structured questionnaire. Data was collected from pregnant Estonian women through a self-administered Web-based questionnaire using a convenience sampling during the period from January to February 2019. A total of 300 pregnant women answered the questionnaire. The data were analysed using statistical analysis and the results of the study were compared with the results of previous studies. Findings The three topics on which information was most frequently sought were: fetal development, use of medicines during pregnancy and symptoms of pregnancy. The main sources of information were the internet and the midwife. The most reliable and valuable source of information was a midwife. Health-related information was sought mainly because it helped women make decisions related to pregnancy and childbirth. A number of factors facilitate the information seeking process. In addition, widespread access to the internet and technological skills facilitated IB. The following factors hindered the search for information: the controversy and/or ambiguity of information published on the internet and the time spent searching for information. Most women used wearable technologies during pregnancy. Research limitations/implications This study has several limitations. First, the weakness of online surveys is the potential lack of representativeness, as it excludes from the survey those who do not have access to or ability to use the internet for various reasons (Evans and Mathur, 2005; Limbu et al., 2021). Second, as most recruitment for the study took place online, there was a risk that those who did not use the internet could be excluded from the survey. Third, as the questionnaire was also shared in the Facebook news feed by the Women’s Clinic and Maternity Hospital of the East Tallinn Central Hospital, it may be that the respondents recruited through it more often used the support provided by medical professionals. Fourth, due to the volume limits of the study, it is not possible to present all the results of the study on the basis of socio-demographic characteristics and stage of pregnancy. Therefore, the findings cannot be generalized to the broader population and future studies should explore a larger and more representative populations. Practical implications This study will give some useful information to help to improve the services offered for pregnant women in Estonia. Social implications The findings of this study may inform how to better support this target group. Originality/value There is a lack of research in Estonia that focuses on the IB of pregnant women and this research fills this gap.

scholarly journals Educational behaviors of pregnant women in the Bronx during Zika’s International emerging epidemic: “First mom … and then I’d Google. And then my doctor”

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Rodriguez ◽  
Antoinette A. Danvers ◽  
Carolina Sanabia ◽  
Siobhan M. Dolan
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Public Awareness ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Complete Information ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Additional Information ◽  
Initial Source ◽  
Source Of Information

Abstract Background The objective of the study was to understand how pregnant women learned about Zika infection and to identify what sources of information were likely to influence them during their pregnancy. Methods We conducted 13 semi-structed interviews in English and Spanish with women receiving prenatal care who were tested for Zika virus infection. We analyzed the qualitative data using descriptive approach. Results Pregnant women in the Bronx learned about Zika from family, television, the internet and their doctor. Informational sources played different roles. Television, specifically Spanish language networks, was often the initial source of information. Women searched the internet for additional information about Zika. Later, they engaged in further discussions with their healthcare providers. Conclusions Television played an important role in providing awareness about Zika to pregnant women in the Bronx, but that information was incomplete. The internet and healthcare providers were sources of more complete information and are likely the most influential. Efforts to educate pregnant women about emerging infectious diseases will benefit from using a variety of approaches including television messages that promote public awareness followed up by reliable information via the internet and healthcare providers.

scholarly journals Thai Pregnant Mobile Application: Review and Development Report

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (13) ◽  
pp. 57
Author(s):  
Rachit Pinnarong ◽  
Sorawit Siangpipop ◽  
Atichart Harncharnchai ◽  
Acrapol Nimmolrat ◽  
Orawit Thinnukool
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Design Thinking ◽  
Physical Therapists ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Thai Women ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Mobile Health Application ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Level Of Knowledge ◽  
Health Application

<p class="0abstractCxSpFirst">Since health-related information for pregnant women is extremely complex and sensitive, end-users of any application are required to have the same level of knowledge as the information providers to help them to navigate between various sources of information to ascertain the reliability of contents that are often confusing. However, although there are several such applications for Thai pregnant women in the market, few were developed based on research evidence.</p><p class="0abstractCxSpMiddle"> This study is focused on the design of a health application specifically for Thai pregnant women by extracting the explicit problems of existing applications and providing solutions to them. A design thinking methodology comprised of empathise, define, ideate, prototype and test was used as a guideline to develop a prototype app. IT experts, physical therapists and pregnant women were recruited as participants to address the problem taxonomy and obtain a solution.</p><p class="0abstractCxSpLast">The new application produced in this study with the aim of encouraging pregnant women especially for Thai women to engage in physical activity was based on research, and the input of physical therapists, IT experts and pregnant women users was able to feasibly inform the development of an acceptable and usable mobile health application for pregnant women.</p>

scholarly journals Do COVID-19 Apps Address Diabetes Mellitus and Health Equity Issues

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. A379-A379
Author(s):  
Brian Nguyen ◽  
Chap-Kay Kendra Lau ◽  
Gloria Wu ◽  
Dwight Lubrin ◽  
Vincent Siu
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Sexual Orientation ◽  
Hispanic Americans ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Language Background ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Patients With Diabetes ◽  
Race 2

Abstract Purpose: To evaluate if COVID-19 apps address risk factors such as diabetes, hypertension, race, gender, sexual orientation, language. Background: In 2019, there were 204 Billion app downloads and 3.7 billion downloads of ehealth apps. COVID-19 affects ethnic minority patients with diabetes, hypertension, and other risk factors. Spanish is the second most commonly used language after English in the U.S.. African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Asian Americans are at an increased risk of COVID-19. LGBTQ+ communities are also at higher risk for COVID due to historically poor access to healthcare. Methods: The search term, “COVID,” in Google Play store and Apple App store was used to find the most popular COVID-19 apps. App inclusion criteria: 1) Contains COVID-19 information and/or COVID symptom tracker, 2) Marketed and designed for the general public, 3) Free, 4) Android (DROID): 100,000+ Downloads; Apple (iOS): highest star ratings. Apple does not provide a number of downloads. App features: COVID-19 information, COVID-19 symptom questionnaire (QN), Diabetes, Hypertension, Cardiovascular disease, Languages (Spanish, Chinese), Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation. Results: The top 10 DROID apps in descending order are: 1) GuideSafe, 2) CO Exposure Notifications, 3) Care19 Diary, 4) Care19 Alert, 5) Crush COVID RI, 6) MI COVID Alert, 7) DC CAN, 8) CombatCOVID MDC, 9) CombatCOVID PBC, 10) Stronger than C19. The top 10 iOS apps in descending order are: 1) SlowCOVIDNC, 2) COVIDWISE, 3) COVID Alert Pennsylvania, 4) COVID Alert DE, 5) COVID Alert NY, 6) Covid Watch Arizona, 7) Apple COVID-19, 8) COVID Alert NJ, 9) COVID Trace Nevada, 10) CDC. Of the 20 apps: COVID 19 information: 20/20; COVID-19 symptom QN: 8/20; DM: 2/20; HTN: 1/20; CardioVasc: 2/20; Spanish: 11/20 (2/11 of the Spanish apps have Chinese as well). Race: 5/20. Gender: 8/20; Sexual Orientation: 3/20; Age: 10/20. Conclusion: 1) Most apps do not ask about important risk factors such as DM, HTN, and Race. 2) Smartphone apps are not uniform in their health education features. 3) Healthcare providers should continue to play an important role in public education despite the ubiquity of mobile apps.

scholarly journals Can menstrual health apps selected based on users’ needs change health-related factors? A double-blind randomized controlled trial

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 655-666 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jisan Lee ◽  
Jeongeun Kim
Keyword(s):  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
New Method ◽  
Cognitive Changes ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Health Apps ◽  
Menstrual Health ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Mobile Health Apps

Abstract Objective Most healthcare providers are reluctant to use health apps for healthcare because there is no rigorous way of choosing the best app for their patient or consumer. Accordingly, we developed a new method of app selection that fully considers target users’ needs. This study verified whether health apps selected based on target users’ needs can influence health-related factors. Materials and Methods We conducted a randomized control trial of women with dysmenorrhea and premenstrual syndrome using App A (the best app selected using the new method) and App B (the app with the highest number of users worldwide). The intervention was performed over 4 months to include at least 3 menstrual cycles. Results Sixty-one app users completed the 16-week intervention. While users rated both apps as higher in quality than previously used menstrual apps, only App A users showed significant improvements in overall satisfaction, app outcome expectancy, the number of days with records, app social influence, intent to recommend, and the possibility of behavioral or cognitive changes in their symptom management. The number of menus used increased over time. While the app self-efficacy and the number of relief methods did not significantly differ between groups, they still showed an increase in App A users. Conclusions When a menstrual app reflected users’ needs, they recorded their symptoms more often and reported higher app quality, satisfaction, and intention to recommend. This study can not only benefit the selection of menstrual apps, but also confirm that mobile health apps can improve health-related factors.

scholarly journals Developing a Physical Activity Intervention Strategy for Pregnant Women in Buffalo City Municipality, South Africa: A Study Protocol

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (18) ◽  
pp. 6694 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uchenna Benedine Okafor ◽  
Daniel Ter Goon
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
South Africa ◽  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Sample Size ◽  
Intervention Strategy ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Moderate Intensity ◽  
Perceived Benefits ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Exercise Participation

Despite global awareness about the importance and health benefits of physical activity (PA) during pregnancy, several studies have reported a low prevalence of PA participation among pregnant women in both developed and developing countries. This means that most pregnant women do not meet the current PA recommended guideline of 150 min of moderate intensity PA per week. The global call to prioritise PA participation levels in the general population necessitates evaluating the factors affecting PA practice. Seemingly, pregnant women mostly from low-to-middle income countries like South Africa are often predisposed to adverse pregnancy outcomes, possibly because of limited access to, and knowledge of, improved pregnancy and health outcomes as a result of PA participation. Physical activity has been sparsely studied among pregnant South African women, and specifically, there is no known study that assesses the PA levels, patterns, beliefs, sources of information, perceived benefits, barriers, attitudes of pregnant women concerning PA and exercise participation; nor one that explores the perspectives of healthcare providers regarding prenatal PA in the Eastern Cape Province. In addition, no PA intervention strategy exists to promote PA participation in the region. This study, in attempting to fill these gaps in knowledge, adopts two phases. In Phase I, a concurrent mixed-method (quantitative and qualitative) approach assesses the following factors related to PA participation in pregnant women: participation levels, beliefs, attitudes, perceived benefits, barriers to uptake and sources of information. It further ascertains if healthcare professionals are sufficiently informed about PA and if they are advising pregnant women about the need for PA participation during pregnancy. Data will be collected through a structured questionnaire, interviews and focus group discussions. Information on socio-demographic and maternal characteristics will be obtained, and the Pregnancy Physical Activity Questionnaire (PPAQ) will assess PA during pregnancy. A sample size of 384 pregnant women is the required minimum sample for an infinite population at a confidence level of 95%, a precision level of ± 5% and at a prevalence of PA or exercise during pregnancy of 50% (p < 0.05); however, a sample size larger than the minimum number necessary will be recruited to account for possible attrition and to protect against possible data loss. Data will be analysed using a multiple logistic regression to determine the factors that predict sedentary or moderate PA levels and chi-squared analysis to determine the associations between the PA levels of the participants and socio-demographic and clinical variables. The study will assess the data collected on the above-mentioned variables and draw conclusions based on patterns and themes that emerge during analysis. Phase II of the study focuses on strategy development and validation to facilitate the promotion of PA during pregnancy. The developed strategy will be validated through the application of the Delphi technique and the administration of a checklist to selected key stakeholders through organised workshops. Understanding the level and correlates of PA participation among this special population is fundamental to designing intervention strategies to enhance their understanding of, and participation in, PA and exercise. Furthermore, this study’s findings will inform facility-based healthcare providers about the need to integrate health education on PA and pregnancy into antenatal and postnatal care visits in the setting.

A review of Mobile ‘Apps’ for women with anxiety in pregnancy: Maternity care professionals guide to locating and assessing Anxiety Apps (Preprint)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerry Evans ◽  
Jasper Donelan ◽  
Stefan Rennick-Egglestone ◽  
Serena Cox ◽  
Yvonne Kuipers
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Maternity Care ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Digital Information ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Pregnancy Anxiety ◽  
In Pregnancy

BACKGROUND Mental health and pregnancy Apps are widely available and have the potential to improve health outcomes and enhance women’s experience of pregnancy. Women frequently access digital information throughout their pregnancy. Healthcare providers and women have little information to guide them to potentially helpful or effective Apps. OBJECTIVE To develop a methodology to systematically search and evaluate commercially available Apps in order to assist maternity care professionals to identify resources to recommend to pregnant women with symptoms of anxiety. METHODS A stepwise systematic approach to identify, select, describe and assess the most popular and user rated Apps available in the UK from January – March 2021. This included developing a script-based search strategy and search process, developing evaluation criteria and conducting a narrative evaluation and description of the selected Apps. RESULTS Useful search terms were identified which included non-clinical, aspirational and problem-based phrases. There were 39 Apps selected for inclusion in the review. No Apps were located which specifically targeted women with anxiety in pregnancy. Of the 39 Apps included in the review, 33 focused solely on mind-body techniques to promote relaxation, stress reduction and psychological wellbeing. Only eight of the 39 Apps included in the review reported that healthcare professionals had contributed to the App development and only one provided empirical evidence on the effectiveness and acceptability of the App. The top 12 Apps were evaluated by two independent reviewers using the developed criteria and scores. The was a small negative correlation between the reviewers scores and App user rating scores, with higher user rating scores associated with lower reviewer scores. CONCLUSIONS App developers, publishers and maternity care professionals should seek advice from women with lived experience of pregnancy anxiety symptoms to assist in locating, promoting and optimising the visibility of Apps for pregnant women. There is a lack of resources which provide coping strategies based on current evidence for the treatment of anxiety in pregnancy. Maternity Care Providers are hindered in their ability to locate and recommend acceptable and trustworthy Apps due to the lack of information on the evidence-base, development and testing of Apps. Maternity care professionals and women need access to libraries of trusted Apps which have been evaluated against relevant and established criteria.

YouTube as a platform for knowledge and awareness of peritoneal dialysis: A content analysis

2021 ◽  
pp. 089686082110359
Author(s):  
Hasan Haci Yeter ◽  
Omer Faruk Akcay
Keyword(s):  
Peritoneal Dialysis ◽  
Scoring System ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Global Quality ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Search Tool ◽  
Youtube Videos ◽  
Use Of The Internet ◽  
The University

Background: One of the main barriers to choosing peritoneal dialysis (PD) is the lack of awareness and PD knowledge. There is an increasing trend in the use of the internet as a search tool for health-related information. This study aims to determine how useful YouTube videos are to get information about PD. Methods: YouTube videos were evaluated independently by two nephrologists. The videos’ quality was assessed with DISCERN scoring system, global quality score (GQS) and the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) scoring system. We determined the quartile (Q) of the videos as follows: most reliable top 25% videos Q1 and others Q2–4. Results: A total of 295 videos were evaluated. University or society-sourced videos made up 15% ( n = 43) of all videos, and healthcare providers were the primary target audience compared to patients ( p < 0.001). JAMA, GQS and DISCERN scores were significantly higher for the videos that were targeted healthcare providers compared to the patients ( p < 0.001, for all). A total of 34% of the videos in Q1 were obtained from the university or society. Nevertheless, only 17% of the videos prepared for the patients were among the Q1. A small number of videos mentioned that PD maintains the residual kidney function (RKF) longer compared to haemodialysis. Conclusions: Universities and societies should upload videos to provide easy-to-understand information on PD. Also, the important benefits of PD, like the preservation of RKF, should be further highlighted in these videos. It may increase the PD penetrance by increasing patients’ awareness.

scholarly journals Toxoplasmosis and pregnancy: Reliability of internet sources of information

2015 ◽  
Vol 143 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 438-445 ◽  
Author(s):  
Branko Bobic ◽  
Tijana Stajner ◽  
Aleksandra Nikolic ◽  
Ivana Klun ◽  
Jelena Srbljanovic ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Education ◽  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Parasitic Infection ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Accurate Information ◽  
Reference Laboratory ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Childbearing Age ◽  
Google Search ◽  
The Impact

Introduction. Health education of women of childbearing age has been shown to be an acceptable approach to the prevention of toxoplasmosis, the most frequent congenitally transmitted parasitic infection. Objective. The aim of this study was to evaluate the Internet as a source of health education on toxoplasmosis in pregnancy. Methods. A group of 100 pregnant women examined in the National Reference Laboratory for Toxoplasmosis was surveyed by a questionnaire on the source of their information on toxoplasmosis. We also analyzed information offered by websites in the Serbian and Croatian languages through the Google search engine, using ?toxoplasmosis? as a keyword. The 23 top websites were evaluated for comprehensiveness and accuracy of information on the impact of toxoplasmosis on the course of pregnancy, diagnosis and prevention. Results. Having knowledge on toxoplasmosis was confirmed by 64 (64.0%) examined women, 40.6% (26/64) of whom learned about toxoplasmosis through the Internet, 48.4% from physicians, and 10.9% from friends. Increase in the degree of education was found to be associated with the probability that pregnant women would be informed via the Internet (RR=3.15, 95% CI=1.27-7.82, p=0.013). Analysis of four interactive websites (allowing users to ask questions) showed that routes of infection were the most common concern, particularly the risk presented by pet cats and dogs, followed by the diagnosis of infection (who and when should be tested, and how should the results be interpreted). Of 20 sites containing educational articles, only seven were authorized and two listed sources. Evaluation confirmed that information relevant to pregnant women was significantly more accurate than comprehensive, but no site gave both comprehensive and completely accurate information. Only four sites (20%) were good sources of information for pregnant women. Conclusion. Internet has proved itself as an important source of information. However, despite numerous websites, only a few offer reliable information to the Serbian (or Croat) speaking community, and none present complete and accurate information relevant to pregnant women.

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