An mHealth App to Support Fertility Patients Navigating the World of Infertility (Infotility): Development and Usability Study

Abstract

Background The experience of infertility and its treatment engenders considerable stress and is often described as an emotional rollercoaster. A mobile health (mHealth) app may be a novel solution to address the psychoeducational and psychosocial support needs of fertility patients because of its potential to reduce stress and increase patient empowerment. There are a few fertility-related apps that provide information and support to both men and women undergoing fertility treatment; however, none have documented their development and evaluation process. Objective This study aims to describe the development and evaluation process of a bilingual mHealth app, Infotility, designed to meet the psychoeducational and psychosocial support needs of men and women undergoing fertility treatment. Methods To develop the Infotility app, we adhered to the Medical Research Council guidelines for the development and evaluation of complex interventions. First, we conducted literature reviews and needs assessment surveys of fertility patients and health care providers who informed the content and design of the app. Second, we tested the intervention with a small group of end users who provided feedback on the design and appropriateness of the app’s content. Third, we evaluated the uptake and usability of the app using a pre-post study design. Finally, we updated the app’s content based on participants’ feedback and searched for partners to disseminate the app to the broader public. Results This study is the first to describe the development and evaluation process of an mHealth app for men and women undergoing fertility treatment. The app met its goal in providing fertility patients with a clinician-approved, portable resource for reliable information about medical and psychosocial aspects of infertility and its treatments and a confidential peer support forum monitored by trained peer supporters. Participants rated the engagement, functionality, information, and esthetics of the app positively, with an overall app quality mean score of 3.75 (SD 0.53) and a star rating of 3.43 (SD 0.75), with a total possible score and star rating of 5.00. Conclusions By documenting the systematic development and evaluation of the mHealth app for men and women undergoing fertility treatment, this paper can facilitate the replication of the study intervention and the development of similar mHealth apps.

Risky Business: Increasing Fertility Knowledge of Men in the General Public Using the Mobile Health Application Infotility XY

“…Participants were able to use the app as little or as much as they wished during the 2-week study period. This time period was selected based on our previous experience with app usage ( Kruglova et al, forthcoming ), where we found that app usage tended to drop off after 2 weeks, suggesting that a study period of 2 weeks may be sufficient to obtain app usage data, while helping to reduce attrition, which is common in studies of mHealth interventions ( Linardon & Fuller-Tyszkiewicz, 2020 ). After the study period, participants were temporarily blocked from accessing the app and prompted to complete a set of post-app usage questionnaires.…”

“Who needs an app? Fertility patients’ use of a novel mobile health app”

“…To develop the app, our team performed an extensive review of the infertility literature and a need assessment survey of fertility patients and health care professionals in Ontario and Quebec. 21 The app contained informational pages on the medical, lifestyle, psychosocial, and legal aspects of infertility and its treatment (see Table 1 for the information provided in each section), as well as a forum that allowed participants to connect with trained peer supporters who had previously undergone fertility treatment. 21 There were two interfaces of the app: one that was targeted toward men and another towards women.…”

“… 21 The app contained informational pages on the medical, lifestyle, psychosocial, and legal aspects of infertility and its treatment (see Table 1 for the information provided in each section), as well as a forum that allowed participants to connect with trained peer supporters who had previously undergone fertility treatment. 21 There were two interfaces of the app: one that was targeted toward men and another towards women. Although participants could access all of the app's information on either interface, the men's interface highlighted male fertility information while the women's interface focused on female fertility information.…”

Evaluation of a Mobile Health App Offering Fertility Information to Male Patients With Cancer: Usability Study

“…After providing informed consent online, participants created an app account, completed pre–app usage questionnaires, and gained access to the app for 2 weeks. This period was selected based on our previous experience [ 34 ], where app usage tended to drop off after 2 weeks. After app use, participants were blocked from viewing the app and directed to post–app usage questionnaires.…”