A Mobile Phone–Based Healthy Lifestyle Monitoring Tool for People With Mental Health Problems (MyHealthPA): Development and Pilot Testing

Abstract

BackgroundPeople with mental health disorders live, on average, 20 years less than those without, often because of poor physical health including cardiovascular disease (CVD). Evidence-based interventions are required to reduce this lifespan gap.ObjectiveThis study aimed to develop, test, and evaluate a mobile phone–based lifestyle program (MyHealthPA) to help people with mental health problems improve key health risk behaviors and reduce their risk of CVD.MethodsThe development of MyHealthPA occurred in 3 stages: (1) scoping of the literature, (2) a survey (n=251) among people with and without the experience of mental health problems, and (3) program development informed by stages 1 and 2. A small pilot trial among young people with and without mental health disorders was also conducted. Participants completed a baseline assessment and were given access to the MyHealthPA program for a period of 8 weeks. They were then asked to complete an end-of-treatment assessment and a follow-up assessment 1 month later.ResultsIn the study, 28 young people aged 19 to 25 years were recruited to the pilot trial. Of these, 12 (12/28, 43%) had been previously diagnosed with a mental illness. Overall, 12 participants (12/28, 43%) completed the end-of-treatment assessment and 6 (6/28, 21%) completed the follow-up assessment. Small improvements in fruit and vegetable consumption, level of physical activity, alcohol use, and mood were found between baseline and end of treatment and follow-up, particularly among people with experience of mental health issues. Most participants (history of mental illness: 4/7, 57%; no history of mental illness: 3/5, 60%) reported the program had above average usability; however, only 29% (2/7, no history of mental illness) to 40% (2/5, history of mental illness) of participants reported that they would like to use the program frequently and would recommend it to other young people. Participants also identified a number of ways in which the program could be improved.ConclusionsThis study describes the formative research and process of planning that formed the development of MyHealthPA and the evidence base underpinning the approach. The MyHealthPA program represents an innovative approach to CVD risk reduction among people with mental health problems. MyHealthPA appears to be an acceptable, easy-to-use, and potentially effective mHealth intervention to assist young people with mental illness to monitor risk factors for CVD. However, ways in which the program could be improved for future testing and dissemination were identified and discussed.

A Multiple Health Behavior Change, Self-Monitoring Mobile App for Adolescents: Development and Usability Study of the Health4Life App

“…However, only a quarter of participants reported that they would like to use the app frequently and most participants expressed neutral attitudes with regard to the app consistency and integration of features. Despite previous support for the effectiveness of mobile phone-based interventions for changing health risk behaviors [16][17][18][19][20], disparity between perceived acceptability of an app and actual use has been reported in previous mobile-based development and evaluation studies [40]. Co-design with young people and tools to promote active engagement are likely to be important components of any youth-based app.…”

“…The Health4Life app was based on our team's previously developed and evaluated multiple health behavior change mobile-based tool named MyHealthPA [40]. MyHealthPA was developed to help people improve 4 of the Big 6 lifestyle risk behaviors (poor diet, physical inactivity, alcohol use, and smoking).…”

“…For example, the model recommends using a flat design, including no more than 2 levels past the initial page or screen, descriptive labels, and explicit instructions, rather than succinct and abstract labels, with text written at a low reading level. The MyHealthPA app was trialed among 28 young people aged between 19 and 25 years over an 8-week period [40]. Small improvements in fruit and vegetable consumption, level of physical activity, alcohol use, and mood were found between baseline, immediately postintervention, and 1 month follow-up [40].…”

“…The MyHealthPA app was trialed among 28 young people aged between 19 and 25 years over an 8-week period [40]. Small improvements in fruit and vegetable consumption, level of physical activity, alcohol use, and mood were found between baseline, immediately postintervention, and 1 month follow-up [40]. However, several opportunities for improvement were also identified, including conversion to a native app format (as opposed to a responsive website optimized for mobile phones) [40].…”

How Resource Scarcity and Accessibility Affect Patients’ Usage of Mobile Health in China: Resource Competition Perspective

“…With the rapid development of mobile internet technology and growing prevalence of smartphones, mHealth has become an increasingly practical, innovative approach to health care delivery, especially in rural and remote areas [19-21]. Many applications for mHealth services have been reported in the extant literature, including chronic disease management [22,23], mental health services [24], health solutions for pregnant women and teenage youth [25-27], and health monitoring [28,29].…”