Dada: Stroke Risk Assessment Mobile Health Application for Older Adults

Abstract

Globally, stroke is one of the leading causes of mortality and disability. Thus, preventing stroke is a public health priority. A platform available nowadays is the use of mHealth applications which has shown to be of aid in the management of chronic conditions that are prevalent in older adults. Therefore, the key purpose of this research is to develop a mHealth application for stroke risk assessment which aimed to: explore the relevant end-user environments, contexts, and problems experienced relating to stroke risk assessment of the older adult; determine the design specifications for the mHealth app; and determine the usability of the developed stroke risk assessment mHealth app. The study employed the Modified Information Systems Research framework, combining two user- centered design methods which are the Information Systems Research and Design Thinking. Data were gathered from twenty intended users comprising of public health nurses, barangay health workers, midwives and caregivers selected using purposive sampling. The data were collected through semi- structured interviews, “think-aloud protocol”, brainstorming, iterative prototyping, personas, and post-study system usability questionnaire (PSSUQ). There are three main problems relating to stroke risk assessment identified. These are: Lack of resource; Literacy and education as a barrier to risk assessment; and Overburdened work environment and exhausted healthcare workers decrease quality of care (LoLO). Design specifications and requirements were also identified and are presented which are: Simple Design; Truly Cordilleran inspired backgrounds; Relevant information; Options on Language; Key Points; Ease of use (STROKE). The usability testing confirmed that the DADA mHealth app is satisfying in all aspects namely: system usefulness, information quality, and interface quality.