The Journal of mHealth Vol 3 Issue 1 (Feb/Mar 2016) | Page 24

The Path to Digital Health Nirvana is Paved with Data
Continued from page 21

mHealth users come in different types
It’s worth remembering too that mHealth users will generally
behave in one of two ways when engaging with an app. These
are what I call `initiators`, who want to find a specific piece of
information or do a specific task quickly or `investigators` who
are looking for general information or education.
So, if your target audience are initiators, for instance those wanting to book an appointment, focus on features which enable
them to complete tasks in the smallest number of steps and minimise or discard any functionality which does not help do that. If
they are investigators, for instance wanting to check symptoms,
look at ways to give them fast and easy access to broad information, then identify ways to give them reason to return.
Don’t also forget that if developing platforms and apps that
will be shared by patients and professionals that the information
recorded must be displayed in a way that is useful and advantageous for both parties and enables discussion and action that
improves outcomes.
You are not alone
Realise that no matter how great your mHealth app it won’t be
permanently at the centre of the user’s universe. By virtue of
the smartphone’s ubiquity, something is going to distract or
interrupt the user of your app - either in their surroundings or
from the phone itself.
Keeping your mHealth app simple, intuitive with a clean, clear
interface makes it less hard work for the user and allows the task
to be completed faster so making them less likely to need to
disengage from your app to do other things. But in the real word
that is going to happen at some point so also ensure that it's easy
to pick up from where they left off if disturbed. To makes sure

this happens enable save states, break larger tasks down into
smaller chunks, and put context throughout.
Bear in mind that mHealth apps are usually part of a more connected technology service offering (or at least should be) and
therefore data ubiquity across devices and form factors is key.
Deciding on the amount and type of data to store on the device
vs storing in the cloud is important as it can effect performance
as well as impact on security and usability.
A design is never perfect
As the mobile marketplace constantly innovates treat your
mHealth apps and platforms as a continuously evolving entities, using data from analytics, user feedback, and advances in
technologies to constantly appraise and improve the experience.
Don’t ever ignore any piece of feedback that comes your way.
There is, however, a point where change becomes counter-productive. Once the app has achieved a critical mass of acceptance it needs to be stabilised before the early majority of users
will commit to it.
Would I really use this?
Don’t develop in a healthcare bubble. Look outside of the field
of mHealth for the best in consumer apps and see what features
could be adapted for the health 6&RW6W"गN(