Requirements of an instrument that enables mobile health assessments

Abstract

There is a major debate to what extent stakeholders adopt, use and benefit from mobile health. The time it takes to prove the efficacy and validity of mobile health applications is one of the reasons why mobile health has not been fully adopted. The technology is furthermore progressing at a much faster pace than the research on scientific validation of mobile health. This introduces the risks that applications that are possibly ineffective, harmful or iatrogenic will be used and deployed. The aim of this research is therefore to identify the requirements of a framework that enables a rapid, systematic and critical assessment of mobile health applications. A systematic and explorative literature study provides insights in the requirements for such an instrument. Existing methods are evaluated and compared to determine how these currently assess applications. Results and a first design of the framework were presented to experts during a focus group and various interviews for validation. An artifact has been created and tested by assessing four popular mobile health applications. Further research is necessary to improve and valorize the instrument.