JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Digital health tools such as smartphone apps, have the potential to improve supportive cancer care. Although numerous smartphone apps for supportive care are available, few are designed with a user-centric approach. Such an approach is crucial for successful implementation, as it may improve user engagement, usability, and adoption in clinical settings.

Objective:

This study aimed to co-design and develop a digital health app in collaboration with cancer patients and healthcare professionals while exploring factors influencing future acceptance.

Methods:

A participatory study was conducted with the major stakeholders at University Hospital Zurich (USZ). Workshops, individual qualitative interviews, and focus groups were held with healthcare professionals, cancer survivors and cancer patients. The co-design process was divided into three phases: pre-design, generative phase, and prototyping. User-centered design methods included scoring cards, and think-aloud protocols to co-create design ideas, identify important functionalities, and test usability. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis.

Results:

Patients and healthcare professionals emphasized the need for a digital health app to improve patient-healthcare professional communication, digitalize supportive care screening and processes, and enhance self-efficacy. The resulting app, OncoSupport+, was co-designed and integrated into the clinical workflow for supportive cancer care. It consists of (1) a patient dashboard to record Patient Reported Outcomes Measures (PROMs), as well as to give access to personalized supportive care information and contact details; and (2) a nurse dashboard to visualize patient data, which can be used during nursing consultations. Potential facilitators for adoption included ease of use, workflow integration, introduction by healthcare professionals and technical support, while internet anxiety may be a potential barrier.

Conclusions:

Collaborative development with patients and healthcare professionals is crucial for creating digital health tools that can be implemented successfully. Future research should evaluate the feasibility of long-term implementation, the real-world usability, and effectiveness of OncoSupport+ on communication, self-efficacy, and quality of life.