Usability Pitfalls of Diabetes mHealth Apps for the Elderly

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus has high prevalence in the ageing population and is often accompanied by other comorbidities, such as Alzheimer's disease, and general disabilities, such as poor eyesight. These comorbidities have redefined ways in which patients use mHealth apps, including diabetes apps. The latter have proven benefits for monitoring blood glucose levels and insulin tracking in the general population. In this paper, we analyse a diabetes monitoring app DeStress Assistant (DeSA), which was developed as a part of an EU project and tested in a hospital setting. Due to the increasing number of older adults, we wanted to ensure the app was suitable for that demographic. Based on a number of supervised tests, we show that the app, which was developed with the help of workshops and feedback from tech-savvy patients and clinicians, is difficult to use by elderly users. We demonstrate that with a small number of changes it is possible to raise the usability of the app in a number of categories. We summarise the lessons learned in the discussion. Our findings demonstrate that special care needs to be taken when developing mHealth apps for the elderly population.

Mobile application for diabetes self-management in China: Do they fit for older adults?

“…Meeting appropriate usability criteria for included features determines patient engagement, optimal benefit of an intervention, and an understanding of generalizability [22]. Isaković’s research showed that app features developed for the general population are not necessarily suitable for elderly users [23]. …”

“…Isaković et al [23] recruited older adults to evaluate diabetes app they developed for general diabetic patients, reporting that elderly users had difficulty using the app. Arnhold et al [20] performed an expert-led usability test of general diabetes apps for patients age 50 years or older; with results showing moderate to good usability.…”

Preferences for Health Information Technologies Among US Adults: Analysis of the Health Information National Trends Survey (Preprint)

“…[37] Another study also showed that older adults were less likely than younger adults to value the importance of Patient Health Records (PHRs). [31] There might be several reasons behind these findings including: a) greater ease of use and comfort with technology among younger adults, [38] b) poor usability, availability, and accessibility of HIT functions tailored to the elderly, [39][40][41] c) lower health literacy in the elderly, [42,43] d) lower educational attainment and income in the elderly, [3,44] and e) unique challenges from having chronic diseases that are more prevalent in the elderly that impede use of technology (e.g. arthritis, vision impairment etc.).…”

Impact of Socio-Demographic Factors on the Acceptance of Information Communication and Technology (ICT) for Diabetes Self-care

“…Interventions should include the elderly as part of the stakeholder group, or critical factors that are necessary to address the real problem may be overlooked. This may result in poor adoption and inefficient use of technology [40]. Interventions should include new perspectives and use patients' tactic knowledge [40].…”

“…This may result in poor adoption and inefficient use of technology [40]. Interventions should include new perspectives and use patients' tactic knowledge [40].…”