Abstract T P111: The Use of Smartphone Applications to Provide Information to Patients and Their Carers

Abstract

Introduction: Patients and their carers find it difficult to access information following a stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA). To improve the provision of this information, the Royal College of Physicians' National Clinical Guideline for Stroke (4th edition, 2012) was accompanied by a booklet designed for patients and their carers. Dissemination of the information was enhanced with the development of smartphone applications that are freely available on both iOS and Android devices. Here we present a report into the use of these applications. Methods: The applications were designed to reflect the content of the booklet with the information primarily accessed via a scrollable index, with separate sections to provide information on support services available in the UK. Data on usage were anonymously collected during the first eight months following global release. The hypothesis that users would preferentially access information on particular topics was tested. Results: The smartphone applications were downloaded a total of 2,046 times (1,503 iOS and 543 Android), of which 61.3% was by individuals in the UK. Topics covering rehabilitation were most commonly accessed, accounting for 33.2% of all application usage. Within this category, ‘Care after a stroke or TIA (principles)’ represented 14.5% of use and ‘Sex after stroke’ represented 13.1%. The next most commonly accessed category was ‘Specialist early care’ with 25.0% of total application usage, of which the topic ‘Brain scan’ accounted for 24.5%. Overall, the most commonly accessed index item was titled ‘Stroke, what is it?’, and this represented 8.27% of total application usage. Within the category of support services, 45.6% of usage was directed towards accessing information on ‘Local health services and stroke clubs’. Conclusions: Smartphone applications are useful adjuncts for the dissemination of information to patients and their carers following a stroke or TIA. Users exhibit a preference for information on rehabilitation and specialist early care. Future publications should target these topics for more in-depth discussion.