METHODS: A scoping review was carried out. The Google Play Store and Apple App Store were searched for mobile apps, using search terms derived from the UK Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) guideline on GPs' core capabilities and competencies. A manual search was also performed to identify additional apps.
RESULTS: The final analysis included 17 apps from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store, and 21 apps identified by the manual search. mHealth apps were found to have the potential to replace GPs for tasks such as recording medical history and making diagnoses; performing some physical examinations; supporting clinical decision making and management; assisting in urgent, long-term, and disease-specific care; and health promotion. In contrast, mHealth apps were unable to perform medical procedures, appropriately utilise other professionals, and coordinate a team-based approach.
CONCLUSIONS: This scoping review highlights the functions of mHealth apps that can potentially replace GP tasks. Future research should focus on assessing the performance and quality of mHealth apps in comparison with that of real doctors.
AIMS: This study aimed to assess the readiness and ability to use mHealth apps among patients with CKD in north-east Peninsular Malaysia.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was undertaken, using a convenience sample of 100 CKD medical inpatients in a tertiary teaching hospital. A structured, self-administered questionnaire on readiness and ability to use mHealth apps was adopted.
FINDINGS: Nearly one in five patients (18%) actively used health applications. More than three-quarters (77%) were aged >40 years and a similar proportion were ready to use mHealth apps (78%), and nearly half (46%) were confident about connecting their device to wifi. There was a correlation between ability and readiness to use mHealth apps (r=0.4; P<0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: Fewer than half of participants had a good command of mHealth applications. Therefore, support on the use of these apps is needed, and healthcare managers need to consider this.
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to review all freely available apps related to the SM of PWEs and to determine the SM domains covered in these apps.
METHODS: We performed a search of apps on Google Play and App Store using the keywords "epilepsy" or "seizures" from May to August 2018. Apps were included if they were free and in English language. We excluded apps with installation-related issues and not related to epilepsy self-management (eSM).
RESULTS: A total of 22 eSM apps were identified in our search: 6 of these run only on iOS, 7 only on Android, and 9 run on both operating systems. Of the 11 domains of SM, seizure tracking and seizure response features were covered by most apps (n=22 and n=19, respectively), followed by treatment management (n=17) and medication adherence (n=15). Three apps (Epilepsy Journal, Epilepsy Tool Kit, and EpiDiary) were installed more than 10,000 times, with features focused specifically on a few domains (treatment management, medication adherence, health care communication, and seizure tracking). Two apps (Young Epilepsy and E-Epilepsy Inclusion) covered more than 6 SM domains but both had lower installation rates (5000+ and 100+, respectively).
CONCLUSIONS: Both Android and iOS mHealth apps are available to improve SM in epilepsy, but the installation rate of most apps remains low. The SM features of these apps were different from one another, making it difficult to recommend a single app that completely fulfills the needs of PWEs. The common features of the apps evaluated included seizure tracking and seizure response. To improve the efficacy and availability of these apps, we propose the following: (1) involve the stakeholders, such as physicians, pharmacists, and PWEs, during the development of mHealth apps; (2) assess the efficacy and acceptance of the apps objectively by performing a usability analysis; and (3) promote the apps so that they benefit more PWEs.
METHODS: A phenomenological qualitative study was conducted from November 2020 to June 2021. Thirteen respondents were recruited from two public rehabilitation centers in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia. In-depth interviews were conducted. A comprehensive representation of perspectives from the respondents was achieved through purposive sampling. The interviews were conducted in the Kelantanese dialect, recorded, transcribed, and analyzed by using thematic analysis.
RESULTS: Thirteen participants were involved in the interviews. All of them agreed with the need for a mobile application in stroke management. They believed the future stroke application will help them to seek information, continuous stroke home care, and help in the welfare of caregivers and stroke patients.
CONCLUSIONS: The current study revealed two themes with respective subthemes that were identified, namely, self-seeking for information and reasons for using a stroke mobile application in the future. This application helps in reducing healthcare costs, enhancing the rehabilitation process, facilitating patient engagement in decision making, and the continuous monitoring of patient health.
OBJECTIVE: In this study, we tested the employment of a free and widely used social and communication app to help older adults with diabetes manage their distress and glycemic control. We also compared the effectiveness of the app with 2 other methods, namely telephone and conventional health education, and determined which subgroup experiences the most effects within each intervention.
METHODS: Adults aged ≥50 years with type 2 diabetes were recruited from Southern Taiwan (N=231) and were allocated to different 3-month interventions. Informed consent was obtained at the Ministry of Science and Technology and approved by the National Cheng Kung University Hospital Institutional Review Board (No. A-ER-102-425).
RESULTS: Participants in the mobile-based group had significant reductions in hemoglobin A1c compared with the telephone-based and usual care groups (mean changes of -0.4%, 0.1%, and 0.03%, respectively; P=.02). Diabetes-specific distress decreased to a greater extent in the mobile-based group compared to the other 2 groups (mean changes of -5.16, -3.49, and -2.44, respectively, P=.02). Subgroup analyses further revealed that the effects on reducing blood glucose levels in the social and communication app groups were especially evident in patients with lower distress scores, and diabetes-related distress was especially evident in participants who were younger than 60 years or had higher educational levels.
CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study inform more flexible use of social and communication apps with in-person diabetes education and counselling.
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the content, features, and quality of commercial dialysis diet apps for adult dialysis patients.
METHODS: This study consisted of a quantitative content analysis of commercial dialysis diet apps downloaded from Google Play and the Apple App Store available in the Asian marketplace, searched for using the following keywords in English: dialysis diet and diet for kidney disease. Free and paid apps available in English that provide nutrition information for adult dialysis patients were included. Apps that were not relevant to the dialysis diet, not meant for patient self-management, or redundant were excluded. Apps were evaluated for language medium (subscore=1), credibility (subscore=1), food database (subscore=1), valuable features (subscore=12), health-behavior theory constructs (subscore=60), and technical quality (subscore=25). The relationships among the variables of interest were determined by Pearson correlation. Stepwise multiple linear regression analysis was performed to identify the features that contribute to greater technical quality of dialysis diet apps. Statistical significance was defined as P
OBJECTIVE: To assess the uses, needs and preferences towards a dietary application among the caregivers of AAMDs patients.
METHODS: We conducted a mixed-method study comprising focus group discussion (FGD) and a quantitative questionnaire survey among caregivers of patients aged between 6-month-old to 18-year-old with AAMDs who are receiving active treatment, both medical and dietetic treatment in the genetic clinic, Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL).
RESULTS: A total of 76 and 20 caregivers participated in the survey and FGD respectively. All the caregivers (100%) possessed a smartphone and most of the caregivers (89.5%) had the experience of using smartphone or other technological devices to search for health or medical information. However, majority of the participants were not aware of the existence of any web-based or mobile application related to AAMDs (89.5%). While for the qualitative part, three themes emerged: (1) experience with current source of information; (2) needs for supporting self-management educational contents and needs for technological design application. Most of the caregivers used the nutritional booklet as sources of reference but some of them searched for web-based information. Features perceived by the caregivers included a digital food composition database, sharing diet recall with healthcare providers, self-monitoring diet intake as well as low protein recipes. Besides that, user-friendly and ease to use were also perceived as the important features by the caregivers.
CONCLUSION: The identified features and needs by the caregivers should be integrated into the design of the apps to promote acceptance and usage.