JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Mobile Health (mHealth) interventions can transform healthcare delivery and improve population health. The evidence regarding lifestyle interventions is growing. They show promising results in both, preventing and treating non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and enhancing health-related quality of life (HRQoL). These aspects highlight the potential of multidomain mHealth interventions for lifestyle management.

Objective:

This viewpoint paper focuses on drawing valuable lessons from past experiences and providing guidance to developers of mHealth interventions for lifestyle management. We underscore the critical role of sharing practical insights to advance innovation in the field of mHealth interventions.

Methods:

We employed an iterative consensus process to derive lessons learned, identify challenges, and reflect on possible actions. Our insights are based on our experience in developing two smartphone-based lifestyle interventions.

Results:

Challenges and options in the following areas are presented: target population (preferences, personalization, and delivery and content), user involvement and testing, human support, and multidomain interventions (interdisciplinarity, flexibility, and core team).

Conclusions:

The development of multidomain mHealth interventions for lifestyle management requires a participatory approach involving relevant stakeholders (incl. end users) so that the right people get the right content at the right time. Additionally, it is crucial to consider established frameworks and guidelines, allocate appropriate resources, and establish a core team committed to the project's aims and open to working in an interdisciplinary team.