User-needs based app for patients with inflammatory bowel disease: development and usability study.

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Mobile Health Applications
• Chronic Disease Management

Background:

• Mobile applications are crucial for managing chronic conditions like Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).
• IBD requires lifelong management, and apps can aid self-monitoring and shared decision-making.
• Digital healthcare solutions are evolving to support patients with rare, chronic diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a specialized digital healthcare app for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) patients.
• To enhance patient self-management capabilities and improve communication with healthcare providers.
• To evaluate the app's usability through rigorous testing and patient feedback.

Main Methods:

• Designed six core features based on patient needs and expert input.
• Developed and tested a prototype app, "WITH-Jang", including its architecture and interface.
• Conducted heuristic evaluations with experts and usability testing with IBD patients, followed by focus groups.

Main Results:

• Core features include Personalized Health Summary, Symptom Tracking, and Medication Adherence Monitoring using Patient-Reported Outcomes.
• A prototype "WITH-Jang" was developed and integrated key features.
• Usability testing with 15 experts and 20 IBD patients informed app refinement, resulting in a simplified UI and updated "My Health Summary" for version 1.0.

Conclusions:

• The WITH-Jang app facilitates proactive self-health management for IBD patients.
• It visualizes crucial symptom and medication data, improving patient-provider communication.
• The app supports personalized care and shared decision-making, proving valuable for chronic disease management.