Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Formative Research
Date Submitted: Dec 11, 2025
Open Peer Review Period: Dec 11, 2025 - Feb 5, 2026
Date Accepted: Jun 5, 2026
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
A Mobile Health Platform for Heart Failure Self-management: Feasibility Study on Patient Engagement, Acceptance and Potential Health Outcomes
ABSTRACT
Background:
Heart failure is a chronic condition which significantly impacts patients’ quality of life and increases healthcare burden. Effective self-monitoring and lifestyle modifications are essential components of management and improving health outcomes. Mobile health technologies, such as smartphone apps, are being used more widely to assist heart failure patients with self-management. However, evidence regarding patient engagement, user experience, and the effectiveness of these mobile health tools remains limited and continues to evolve.
Objective:
Our research aimed to explore the feasibility of a mobile health platform, MoTER-HF, which incorporates a smartphone app and a web-based clinical portal to support self-management in heart failure patients.
Methods:
The feasibility study utilized a single-group pretest-posttest mixed-methods design. A total of 23 participants diagnosed with heart failure were recruited to use the app and two Bluetooth-enabled devices (a blood pressure monitor and a digital weight scale) over a 12-week period. Patients’ engagement and acceptance were assessed using a satisfaction questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, and platform usage logs. Health and behavior outcomes were measured at baseline and at week 12 using validated instruments.
Results:
Most participants found the MoTER-HF app easy to use and aligned with their daily health monitoring routines. The frequency of use for features such as tracking blood pressure and weight daily was high. However, features such as self-reported symptom tracking and recording exercises in the app were used less frequently, reflecting individual preferences and perceived relevance. While no statistically significant changes in health and behaviour outcome were observed, trends indicated modest improvements in self-care, quality of life, and psychological well-being. Participants reported improved self-monitoring practices and valued the ability to visualize and track their data as well as the reassurance provided through nurses’ oversight.
Conclusions:
The MoTER-HF platform has demonstrated potential in supporting self-management among individuals with heart failure, particularly when it incorporates features that participants find engaging. Further research is needed to better understand the platform’s impact on health outcomes and to involve clinicians in developing a scalable digital model of care.
Citation
Request queued. Please wait while the file is being generated. It may take some time.
Copyright
© The authors. All rights reserved. This is a privileged document currently under peer-review/community review (or an accepted/rejected manuscript). Authors have provided JMIR Publications with an exclusive license to publish this preprint on it's website for review and ahead-of-print citation purposes only. While the final peer-reviewed paper may be licensed under a cc-by license on publication, at this stage authors and publisher expressively prohibit redistribution of this draft paper other than for review purposes.