Mobile application: digital health card for deaf adolescents

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Health Informatics
• Accessibility in Healthcare

Background:

• Deaf adolescents often face barriers in accessing and understanding their health information.
• Health cards are crucial for managing personal health data but may not be accessible to individuals with hearing impairments.
• Promoting health literacy and autonomy is vital for empowering young people, especially those with disabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a mobile health (mHealth) application tailored for deaf adolescents.
• To enhance autonomy in accessing personal health information through a user-centered design.
• To base the application on the individual's health card information for personalized access.

Main Methods:

• A methodological study involving three stages: knowledge assessment, application development, and evaluation.
• Development utilized videos in Brazilian Sign Language (Libras), Android Studio, and Java.
• Expert evaluation assessed usability, achieving a score of 85.5 (good to excellent).

Main Results:

• Most deaf adolescents lacked awareness of their health card.
• The application features distinct male and female interface modes.
• User data security complies with the Brazilian General Data Protection Law.

Conclusions:

• The developed mHealth application successfully delivers health card information via text and Libras video, fostering adolescent autonomy.
• The app is designed with sex-specific interfaces for enhanced user experience.
• Future development may involve expanding to other mobile platforms.