Willingness to Adopt mHealth Among Chinese Parents During the COVID-19 Outbreak: Cross-sectional Questionnaire Study (Preprint)

Abstract

BACKGROUND Under COVID-19 outbreak, m-Health can assist with health promotion, medicine instruction, disease diagnosis via online chat, video consultation without visiting hospitals. OBJECTIVE This study aimed at identifying associated factors of willingness to adopt m-Health among Chinese parents under COVID-19 outbreak, investigated the correlation between the frequency of adopting m-Health and parent’s behaviour towards child-health at home. METHODS An online-based survey was performed among Chinese parents from 25th January to 15th February, 2020. Two questionnaires including demographic variables and parent’s behavior towards child-health at home were used to measure the procedure. RESULTS Out of 254 parents, 202 (79.53%) were willing to adopt m-Health under COVID-19 outbreak. Multivariable logistics regression model demonstrated that parent’s age, parent’s attention to the pandemic of COVID-19, the source to recommend m-Health, the child with chronic disease, parent’s duration of daily internet use, adopt mobile health service before COVID-19 outbreak were significantly correlated with parent’s willingness to adopt m-Health under COVID-19 outbreak. Pearson chi-square test revealed a strong indication of dependency between the frequency of using m-Health in one month and parent’s behavior towards child-health at home (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Willingness to adopt m-Health was high. parent’s age, parent’s attention to the pandemic of COVID-19, the source to recommend m-Health, the child with chronic disease, parent’s duration of daily internet use, adopt mobile health service before COVID-19 outbreak were significantly associated factors. Providing the option of m-Health to patients under COVID-19 outbreak would be a better way to educate and instruct them to improve self-management in child-health at home.