JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Over the past decade, smartphone technology has become increasingly sophisticated and ubiquitous. Modern smartphones, now owned by more than three quarters of Canadians and 94% of millennials, perform an array of functions potentially useful in the healthcare context, such as tracking fitness data, enabling health record sharing, and providing user-friendly platforms for disease management. Approximately half of smartphone users have downloaded at least one health application and clinicians are increasingly using them in their practice. But despite widespread use, there is an incomplete patchwork of evidence supporting their safety and efficacy. Few applications have been independently evaluated and many lack basic patient protections such as privacy policies. Against this backdrop, calls for the regulation of mobile health apps have increased. In this viewpoint, we argue that while Health Canada’s recent proposed approach is promising, it will not likely be adequate on its own.