JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is one of those progressive diseases that deteriorate lung functions. When patients cannot breathe, nothing else in their lives matter. The breathlessness has negative implications on patients’ lives that lead to physical and psychological limitations. The physical limitations impede daily life activities that are essential for patients with COPD. Psychological limitations are manifested in anxiety that results from the emotional response to breathlessness. Because patients with COPD are always overwhelmed by anxiety and depression, they are less motivated to engage in self-care and education intervention. Moreover, the lack of relevant and updated information about the causes and consequences of the disease can exacerbate the problems of health literacy, information accessibility, and medical adherence

Objective:

The objective of this study is to design an innovative mHealth app system called “MyLung” that provides a complete solution to increase self-awareness and to promote better self-care management. This IT artifact includes three integrative modules that are novel: education, risk reduction, and monitoring.

Methods:

The utility and effectiveness of the assistive mobile-based technology are evaluated using mixed methods approach. The study combines quantitative and qualitative research methods to thoroughly understand how the assistive mobile-based technology can influence patients’ behavioral intention to change their lifestyle. Thirty patients were assigned in two groups (intervention group and control group). The results from the quantitative analysis introduced several follow-up interviews using a qualitative study

Results:

The results of the quantitative study provide significant evidence that the design of MyLung leads to change in awareness level, self-efficacy and behavioral intention for patients with COPD. T- tests reveal significant difference before and after using mobile based app for awareness level (M = 3.28 versus 4.56, t(10) = 6.062, p < 0.001), self-efficacy (M = 3.11 versus 5.56, t(10) = 2.96, p = 0.014) and behavioral intention (M = 2.91versus 4.55, t(10) = 3.212, p = 0.009). In the same vein, independent sample t-tests reveal significant difference between groups in awareness level (M = 4.56 versus 3.31, t(19) = 4.80, p < 0.001) and self- efficacy (M = 5.56 versus 3.66, t(19) = 2.8, p < 0.012). Integrating findings from quantitative and qualitative strands introduces inferences that describe the impact of the design in a comprehensive view. These inferences are referred in this study as “meta-inferences”.

Conclusions:

The objective of this research is to empower patients with COPD with assistive mobile-based technology that helps increase awareness levels and to engage patients in self-care management activities. The assistive technology aims to inform patients about the risk factors of COPD, and to improve access to relevant information. Meta-inferences that are emerged from the research outputs contribute to chronic management information systems research by helping us gain more complete understanding of the potential impacts of this proposed mobile-based design on patients with chronic disease.