Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Formative Research
Date Submitted: Nov 4, 2020
Date Accepted: Apr 17, 2021
Date Submitted to PubMed: Apr 17, 2021
Feasibility of a voice-enabled medical diary app (SpeakHealth) with caregivers of children with special healthcare needs and healthcare providers: A mixed methods study
ABSTRACT
Background:
Children with special health care needs (CSHCN) require more than the usual care management and coordination efforts from caregivers and health care providers (HCP). Health information and communication technologies can potentially facilitate these efforts in order to increase the quality of care received by CSHCN.
Objective:
In this study, we assessed the feasibility of a voice-enabled medical diary app (SpeakHealth)by investigating its potential use among caregivers and HCPs.
Methods:
Following a mixed methods approach, caregivers of CSHCN were interviewed (n=10) and surveyed (n=86) about their care management and communication technology use. Only interviewed participants were introduced to SpeakHealth app prototype, and they tested the app during the interview session. In addition, we interviewed complex care HCPs (n=15) to understand their perception of the value of a home medical diary like SpeakHealth app. Quantitative data was analyzed through descriptive statistics and correlational analysis. Theoretical thematic analysis was used for analyzing qualitative data.
Results:
Survey results reported a positive attitude towards voice enabled technology and features, however there were no strong correlation among measured items. Qualitative analysis revealed 2 overarching themes: “Enablers and barriers in care communication” and “Enablers and barriers in communication technologies”. HCPs found SpeakHealth app promising for timely information collection that could be available for sharing with the health system. Overall, the findings demonstrated the needs and challenges for caregivers of CSHCN and opportunities of voice interactive medical diary apps in care management and coordination.
Conclusions:
: We believe the perspectives of caregiver and providers suggested both benefits and challenges in using SpeakHealth app for medical note taking and health events tracking at home. Our findings could inform researchers and developers about development and use of a voice-enabled medical diary app.
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