No abstract

Background: There is incredible potential for telemedicine to advance postoperative care. Work in high-income nations shows the potential to use mobile phones to monitor postoperative recovery progress. However, there is little information about the attitudes of people in low resource countries, like Myanmar, toward the adoption of mHealth in postoperative care. Aims: This study presents survey results collected in Myanmar to better understand cultural attitudes of this population towards adopting mHealth technologies to improve postoperative patient care. Methods: A thirteen-question survey was developed, focused on demographic questions and attitudes towards physicians, the internet, and willingness to perform tasks on their mobile phones. Respondents were selected in a sample of convenience in urban and rural public spaces. Results: Of the 125 people approached, 112 agreed to participate in the survey. A wide range of ages (18-78), genders (55.4% female), locations (22.3% rural, 77.7% urban) and ethnicities (67% Burmese) were represented. 85.7% were willing to make contact with a surgeon in a hypothetical postoperative setting via mobile phone. 83.0% were willing to fill out a survey about their postoperative state and 69.6% were willing to send a picture of their wound with their surgeon via mobile phone. A majority of respondents had a very high level of trust in physicians in general, most already owned a mobile phone with access to the internet and used it to look up health information. Conclusion: Our results indicate that Myanmar could provide a promising location for the implementation of mHealth technologies to improve post-operative care.