MoveONParkinson: developing a personalized motivational solution for Parkinson's disease management

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Neurology
• Rehabilitation

Background:

• Regular exercise is crucial for managing Parkinson's Disease (PD) symptoms and progression.
• Many individuals with Parkinson's Disease (PwPD) struggle with consistent exercise adherence.
• Digital health solutions offer a promising avenue to support PwPD in maintaining regular physical activity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the acceptability and usability of the MoveONParkinson digital solution, comprising a Web Platform and Mobile App with a Conversational Agent (CA).
• To gather feedback from both PwPD and physiotherapists on the digital tool's interface and features.
• To lay the groundwork for evaluating the solution's impact on exercise engagement and disease management in PwPD.

Main Methods:

• A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining quantitative (questionnaires, System Usability Scale - SUS) and qualitative (semi-structured interviews, thinking-aloud) data.
• Twenty physiotherapists and eight PwPD participated in the study.
• Data analysis included descriptive statistics, heatmaps, correlation matrices, and inductive thematic analysis.

Main Results:

• Three key themes emerged: Self-management, User Engagement, and Recommendations.
• The Mobile App and Conversational Agent (CA) demonstrated high acceptability, with a mean score of 4.42/5.0.
• The Web Platform exhibited good usability, indicated by a mean SUS score of 79.50.

Conclusions:

• The MoveONParkinson digital solution is highly acceptable to PwPD and physiotherapists.
• The tool's good usability suggests potential for effective support in exercise participation.
• This digital solution provides a strong foundation for future studies on its impact on PwPD's exercise engagement and quality of life.