Abstract
BackgroundmHealth and uHealth apps are available for children with asthma and their caregivers. However, previous studies on mHealth apps for children older than 7 years old with asthma are limited, and most studies on asthma apps do not consider interactions involving communication between children and caregivers. Therefore, a prototype mHealth child asthma app was developed for children and their caregivers, with features of tailored feedback messages in continuing self-management and interactions between children and caregivers.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to identify the beneficial features of a prototype mHealth app developed for children with asthma and their caregivers.MethodsChildren diagnosed with persistent asthma by allergy specialists at the National Center for Child Health and Development were recruited. The features of a prototype mHealth app for children with asthma and their caregivers were investigated using semistructured interviews after they tried the app. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Content-characteristic words were named and grouped together as categories to explore themes.ResultsWe recruited 27 children with asthma aged 2 to 12 years and 26 their caregivers. Findings on the good aspects of the app for children older than 7 years old and caregivers suggested 4 themes (confirmation of asthma knowledge, child-caregiver interaction, design of the app, and child’s interest), and 6 categories were identified. Findings on the good aspects of app for children 7 to 12 years old and caregivers suggested 5 themes (new knowledge, manga as a Japanese-style comic, child’s interest, trigger of self-management, and design and operability), and 11 categories were identified. Findings on the beneficial features of app suggested 6 themes (asthma knowledge, elements for continuous, universal design, notification, monitoring, and functions), and 12 categories were identified.ConclusionsChildren with asthma and their caregivers perceived that the good aspects of the app were learning asthma knowledge with fun, including manga; interaction between child and caregiver; and easy-to-read design, such as colors. They wanted not only the asthma knowledge but also the universal design and enhanced elements, monitoring, and notification functions of the app.
Highlights
As mobile technology and smartphones become widely used in the health care sector, several mobile medical and mobile health apps are being released—mHealth apps are most commonly developed to monitor a specific health disorder, to make medication management easier, or to inform users about health information and a specific health disorder. mHealth asthma apps are valuable assets for patients and caregivers alike because they offer immediate communication between patients and those responsible for providing care for their needs [1]
A review [5] of mHealth apps for asthma in 2014 showed that 206 apps were available for patients with asthma, and 16 apps were available for children with asthma and their caregivers
This study aimed to identify the beneficial features of a prototype mHealth app under development for children with asthma and their caregivers
Summary
As mobile technology and smartphones become widely used in the health care sector, several mobile medical and mobile health (mHealth) apps are being released—mHealth apps are most commonly developed to monitor a specific health disorder, to make medication management easier, or to inform users about health information and a specific health disorder. mHealth asthma apps are valuable assets for patients and caregivers alike because they offer immediate communication between patients and those responsible for providing care for their needs [1]. One self-management app contained reminder and notification features, such as tracking of medication, for young people with asthma (aged 15 to 24 years), which resulted in high satisfaction with usefulness and ease of use [8]. Findings on the good aspects of the app for children older than 7 years old and caregivers suggested 4 themes (confirmation of asthma knowledge, child-caregiver interaction, design of the app, and child’s interest), and 6 categories were identified. Findings on the good aspects of app for children 7 to 12 years old and caregivers suggested 5 themes (new knowledge, manga as a Japanese-style comic, child’s interest, trigger of self-management, and design and operability), and 11 categories were identified. Findings on the beneficial features of app suggested 6 themes (asthma knowledge, elements for continuous, universal design, notification, monitoring, and functions), and 12 categories were identified. They wanted the asthma knowledge and the universal design and enhanced elements, monitoring, and notification functions of the app
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