Designing, Implementing and Testing a Mobile Application to Assist with Pediatric-to-Adult Health Care Transition

Abstract

As development of mobile applications continues to expand, accessibility and utility for users who are differently-abled will become essential. One aspect that impacts a large portion of the differently-abled population is the process of medical transition. Medical transition for patients with chronic diseases from pediatric-based care to adult-based care is one that has been studied, developed and implemented for a number of years; recently, it has become a top priority in healthcare. Due to the complexities of the transition process, a well-designed, intuitive mobile application may improve the standardization and ease of care for these patients. This paper proposes and analyzes the design for a mobile transition navigator application (MTNA) while taking into account some of the most common considerations when working with differently-abled users. Specifically, three aspects of mobile application design are examined: (1) mobile user interfaces are different than traditional interfaces; 2. a variety of mobile platforms exist; and, 3. mobile platforms generate benefits and concerns such as the wide variety of screen sizes and resolutions.

Usability of a Smartphone Application to Support the Prevention and Early Intervention of Anxiety in Youth

“…The REACH app was found to be relatively easy to use and easy to learn; messages deployed by the technology were rated as helpful and clear; and the app yielded high satisfaction and social acceptability. These findings are encouraging and generally similar to those reported in the handful of studies that have reported usability tests of mHealth tools for youth (O’Malley et al, 2014; Dixon et al, 2013; Tang et al, 2013). Focusing on knowledge gained for improving the REACH app, it is important to note that almost one-fourth (or 17%) of youth sampled showed low enthusiasm about the app and this may have occurred for several reasons.…”

“…For example, in a review of the available smartphone apps for youth anxiety on the Google Play and Apple App Store, we identified 55 apps but no corresponding usability research was found in the literature. With regard to apps not found on Google Play or the Apple App Store, our search of the literature showed four studies reporting on usability for apps targeting child behavior problems (i.e., Pramana et al, 2014; O’Malley et al, 2014; Dixon, Dehlinger, & Dixon, 2013; Tang, Jheng, Chien, Lin, & Chen, 2013), with one focused on problematic child anxiety. More specifically, Pramana et al (2014), described the SmartCat app for the treatment of anxiety in diagnosed youth and used a single item to estimate usability of the app.…”