Evaluating Health Mobile Apps: Information Literacy in Undergraduate and Graduate Nursing Courses

McNiel, Paula; McArthur, Erin

doi:10.3928/01484834-20160715-12

Cited by 16 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 1 publication

(1 reference statement)

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“…82 Such omissions pose risks to patient safety and explicit app risk assessment has been proposed. 15 Various rating scales, 83,84 scoring systems, 85,86 checklists, [87][88][89][90][91] toolkits, 92,93 questionnaires, 94 development guides 95 and reporting standards for app studies 96,97 all promote more transparent and objective reporting and evaluation. The existence of so many instruments suggests no single one meets all needs.…”

Section: Objective No 3: Methods For Evaluating App Quality and Utilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Going digital: a narrative overview of the effects, quality and utility of mobile apps in chronic disease self-management

Scott

Scuffham²,

Gupta

et al. 2020

Aust. Health Review

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Objective Smartphone health applications (apps) are being increasingly used to assist patients in chronic disease self-management. The effects of such apps on patient outcomes are uncertain, as are design features that maximise usability and efficacy, and the best methods for evaluating app quality and utility. Methods In assessing efficacy, PubMed, Cochrane Library and EMBASE were searched for systematic reviews (and single studies if no systematic review was available) published between January 2007 and January 2018 using search terms (and synonyms) of ‘smartphone’ and ‘mobile applications’, and terms for each of 11 chronic diseases: asthma, chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD), diabetes, chronic pain, serious mental health disorders, alcohol and substance addiction, heart failure, ischaemic heart disease, cancer, cognitive impairment, chronic kidney disease (CKD). With regard to design features and evaluation methods, additional reviews were sought using search terms ‘design’, ‘quality,’ ‘usability’, ‘functionality,’ ‘adherence’, ‘evaluation’ and related synonyms. Results Of 13 reviews and six single studies assessing efficacy, consistent evidence of benefit was seen only with apps for diabetes, as measured by decreased glycosylated haemoglobin levels (HbA1c). Some, but not all, studies showed benefit in asthma, low back pain, alcohol addiction, heart failure, ischaemic heart disease and cancer. There was no evidence of benefit in COPD, cognitive impairment or CKD. In all studies, benefits were clinically marginal and none related to morbid events or hospitalisation. Twelve design features were identified as enhancing usability. An evaluation framework comprising 32 items was formulated. Conclusion Evidence of clinical benefit of most available apps is very limited. Design features that enhance usability and maximise efficacy were identified. A provisional ‘first-pass’ evaluation framework is proposed that can help decide which apps should be endorsed by government agencies following more detailed technical assessments and which could then be recommended with confidence by clinicians to their patients. What is known about the topic? Smartphone health apps have attracted considerable interest from patients and health managers as a means of promoting more effective self-management of chronic diseases, which leads to better health outcomes. However, most commercially available apps have never been evaluated for benefits or harms in clinical trials, and there are currently no agreed quality criteria, standards or regulations to ensure health apps are user-friendly, accurate in content, evidence based or efficacious. What does this paper add? This paper presents a comprehensive review of evidence relating to the efficacy, usability and evaluation of apps for 11 common diseases aimed at assisting patients in self-management. Consistent evidence of benefit was only seen for diabetes apps; there was absent or conflicting evidence of benefit for apps for the remaining 10 diseases. Benefits that were detected were of marginal clinical importance, with no reporting of hard clinical end-points, such as mortality or hospitalisations. Only a minority of studies explicitly reported using behaviour change theories to underpin the app intervention. Many apps lacked design features that the literature identified as enhancing usability and potential to confer benefit. Despite a plethora of published evaluation tools, there is no universal framework that covers all relevant clinical and technical attributes. An inclusive list of evaluation criteria is proposed that may overcome this shortcoming. What are the implications for practitioners? The number of smartphone apps will continue to grow, as will the appetite for patients and clinicians to use them in chronic disease self-management. However, the evidence to date of clinical benefit of most apps already available is very limited. Design features that enhance usability and clinical efficacy need to be considered. In making decisions about which apps should be endorsed by government agencies and recommended with confidence by clinicians to their patients, a comprehensive but workable evaluation framework needs to be used by bodies assuming the roles of setting and applying standards.

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Section: Objective No 3: Methods For Evaluating App Quality and Utilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Going digital: a narrative overview of the effects, quality and utility of mobile apps in chronic disease self-management

Scott

Scuffham²,

Gupta

et al. 2020

Aust. Health Review

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Young and Hinton provided more than fifty examples of case studies and lesson plans for integrating the Framework into health sciences librarianship [ 19 ]. Also, related literature provided ideas that paralleled the Framework without explicitly mentioning it, such as exploring avenues for dissemination [ 20 ], using Twitter to stay current and participate in professional conversations [ 21 ], and evaluating mobile health apps [ 22 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating nursing faculty’s approach to information literacy instruction: a multi-institutional study

McGowan

Cantwell

Conklin

et al. 2020

jmla

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Objective: In 2018, the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL) Health Sciences Interest Group convened a working group to update the 2013 Information Literacy Competency Standards for Nursing to be a companion document to the 2016 Framework for Information Literacy in Higher Education. To create this companion document, the working group first needed to understand how nursing faculty approached information literacy (IL) instruction.Methods: The working group designed a survey that assessed how nursing faculty utilized IL principles in coursework and instruction. The survey consisted of nineteen mixed methods questions and was distributed to nursing faculty at eight institutions across the United States.Results: Most (79%) faculty indicated that they use a variety of methods to teach IL principles in their courses. While only 12% of faculty incorporated a version of the ACRL IL competencies in course design, they were much more likely to integrate nursing educational association standards. Faculty perceptions of the relevance of IL skills increased as the education level being taught increased.Conclusion: The integration of IL instruction into nursing education has mostly been achieved through using standards from nursing educational associations. Understanding these standards and understanding how faculty perceptions of the relevance of IL skills change with educational levels will guide the development of a companion document that librarians can use to collaborate with nurse educators to integrate IL instruction throughout nursing curriculums at course and program levels.

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“…), and a state condition (based on how their current physical and mental states influence their abilities to communicate effectively) [5]. Therefore, it is incumbent upon mHealth developers to design and utilize message systems that will be easy for consumers with health literacy challenges to understand [40].…”

Section: Challenges To Using Mhealth Technologies Effectivelymentioning

confidence: 99%

The relevance of health literacy to mHealth

Kreps

2017

ISU

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Abstract. This paper examines the importance of health literacy to the design and use of mobile digital health information technology (mHealth) applications. Over the past two decades mHealth has evolved to become a major health communication channel for delivering health care, promoting health, and tracking health behaviors. Yet, there are serious communication challenges that must be addressed concerning the best way to design and utilize mHealth application to achieve key health promotion goals, including assuring the appropriateness and effectiveness of mHealth messaging for audiences with different communication competencies, styles, and health literacy levels, to ensure that mHealth applications are truly effective tools for health promotion.Health literacy is one of the major communication issues relevant to the effective use of mHealth. To be effective, mhealth applications need to match the messages conveyed via these mobile media to the specific health communication needs, orientations, and competencies of intended audience members. Unfortunately, current evidence suggests that many mHealth applications are difficult for audiences to utilize because they provide health information that is not easy for many consumers to understand and apply.Health literacy refers to the ability of participants within the health care system to accurately interpret and utilize relevant health information and resources to achieve their health goals. Evidence suggests that many consumers possess limited levels of health literacy to adequately understand health information, especially when they are feeling ill, since health literacy is both a trait (limited education, language facility, etc.), and a state condition (based on how their current physical and mental states influence their abilities to communicate effectively). Therefore, it is incumbent upon mHealth developers to design and utilize message systems. Strategies for designing and implementing mHealth applications to meet the health literacy levels of different audiences are described in this article.

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Evaluating Health Mobile Apps: Information Literacy in Undergraduate and Graduate Nursing Courses

Cited by 16 publications

References 1 publication

Going digital: a narrative overview of the effects, quality and utility of mobile apps in chronic disease self-management

Going digital: a narrative overview of the effects, quality and utility of mobile apps in chronic disease self-management

Evaluating nursing faculty’s approach to information literacy instruction: a multi-institutional study

The relevance of health literacy to mHealth

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