Abstract
There is a lack of mobile app which aims to improve health screening uptake developed for men. As part of the study to develop an effective mobile app to increase health screening uptake in men, we conducted a needs assessment to find out what do men want from a health screening mobile app. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted with 31 men from a banking institution in Kuala Lumpur. The participants were purposely sampled according to their job position, age, ethnicity and screening status. The recruitment was stopped once data saturation was achieved. The audio-recorded interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using thematic approach. Three themes emerged from the analysis and they were: content, feature and dissemination. In terms of the content, men wanted the app to provide information regarding health screening and functions that can assess their health; which must be personalized to them and are trustable. The app must have user-friendly features in terms of information delivery, ease of use, attention allocation and social connectivity. For dissemination, men proposed that advertisements, recommendations by health professionals, providing incentive and integrating the app as into existing systems may help to increase the dissemination of the app. This study identified important factors that need to be considered when developing a mobile app to improve health screening uptake. Future studies on mobile app development should elicit users’ preference and need in terms of its content, features and dissemination strategies to improve the acceptability and the chance of successful implementation.
Highlights
Health screening is a key component in disease prevention framework
Eight in-depth interviews (IDIs) and five focus group discussions (FGDs) involving 31 men were conducted from July to November 2015
This study identified important characteristics that men want from a health screening mobile app and they are categorized into three key themes: content, feature and dissemination
Summary
Health screening is a key component in disease prevention framework. One can detect diseases and identify risk factors early when there is still a window of opportunity for interventions before the disease worsens. Despite the importance of health screening, the uptake remains low, in men [1,2,3,4], who face barriers related to individual, social, health system, healthcare professional and screening procedural factors. Lack of knowledge, lack of symptom, fear of positive results, masculinity attributes and lack of time are common barriers to health screening in men [5, 6]. PLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0169435 January 6, 2017
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
