Monday, February 22, 2016
Commonwealth Fund Questions Usefulness of Mobile Health Apps
Fewer than half of the more than 1,000 healthcare related-apps reviewed by researchers appeared to be useful for their potential for patient engagement while also offering high quality and safety, according to an issue brief published by New York City-based The Commonwealth Fund.
The Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation that supports independent research on health care issues and makes grants to improve health care practice and policy. With Commonwealth Fund support, researchers Karandeep Singh, M.D. and David Bates, M.D and colleagues developed a framework for evaluating mobile health apps for their patient engagement potential, quality and safety.
Rising ownership of smartphones and tablets across social and demographic groups has made mobile applications, or apps, a potentially promising tool for engaging patients in their health care, particularly those with high health care needs, the issue brief authors stated.