Mobile-health offers many opportunities, however the ‘side-effects’ of health-apps are often unclear.
BACKGROUND: Mobile-health offers many opportunities, however the ‘side-effects’ of health-apps are often unclear. With no guarantee health-apps first do no harm, their role as a viable, safe, and effective therapeutic option is limited.
OBJECTIVE: To assess the quality of apps for chronic insomnia disorder, available on the Android Google Play Store, and determine whether a novel approach to app-assessment could identify high quality and low risk health-apps in the absence of indicators such as NHS-approval.
METHODS: The ORCHA-24, 24 app-assessment criteria concerning data privacy, clinical efficacy, and user experience, answered on a ‘yes’ or ‘no’, evidence-driven basis; was applied to assess 18 insomnia apps identified via the Android Google Play Store, in addition to the NHS-approved iOS app Sleepio™.
FINDINGS: 63.2% of apps (12/19) provided a privacy policy, with seven (36.8%) stating no user data would be shared without explicit consent. 10.5% (2/19) stated they had been shown to be of benefit to those with insomnia, with CBT apps outperforming hypnosis and meditation apps (p=0.046). Both the number of app downloads(p=0.29), and user-review scores (p=0.23) were unrelated to ORCHA-24 scores. The NHS-approved app Sleepio™, consistently outperformed non-accredited apps across all domains of the ORCHA-24.
CONCLUSION: Apps for chronic insomnia disorder exhibit substantial variation in adherence to published data privacy, user experience, and clinical efficacy standards; which are not clearly correlated with app downloads or user-review scores.
CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: In absence of formal app accreditation, the ORCHA-24 could feasibly be used to highlight the risk-benefit profiles of health-apps prior to downloading.
In a new blog post, Trustech investigate the options available to NHS patients, when looking for the right app to help manage their condition.
In a new blog post, Trustech investigate the options available to NHS patients, when looking for the right app to help manage their condition.
As Trustech explain:
Patients now have access to a large number of apps to manage or monitor their health. However, whilst some apps have been developed by clinicians who have ensured that the app is effective and safe; others have not been developed so rigorously. Hence, patients need a way of identifying those apps that are fit for purpose and don’t expose them to unnecessary risk.
Some of the options for patients to find apps, as explained by Trustech, are through us at ORCHA, the NHS Apps Library (which is still in beta) and My Therappy, which is aimed at stroke and brain injury recovery and rehabilitation.
Read the full article at https://www.trustech.org.uk/news/blog-assessment-of-apps-for-use-by-nhs-patients/
The North West London (NWL) Collaboration of Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) and the Healthy London Partnership (HLP)
Digital Attitudes Survey – Introduction
The North West London (NWL) Collaboration of Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) and the Healthy London Partnership (HLP) went out to tender in early 2017 jointly seeking a supplier to work with them to develop a survey that would inform an evidence base that will support their plans for improved delivery, and uptake, of existing and new digital health services.
The aim of this project was to develop a survey that would support the NWL collaboration in gaining a high level understanding of their citizen’s needs, motivations and behaviours with regards to digital health tools and services. To achieve the goal of building an effective Digital Strategy for their citizens, the project brief requested support from expert partners to develop a mechanism for gathering evidence on:
A strategic partnership between the Yorkshire & Humber Academic Health Science Network (AHSN) and us (at ORCHA) has been made to support the use and development of health and care apps in the region.
A strategic partnership between the Yorkshire & Humber Academic Health Science Network (AHSN) and us (at ORCHA) has been made to support the use and development of health and care apps in the region.
Through the partnership, we at ORCHA are offering app developers in the Yorkshire and Humber region a voucher giving them a review of their app for the discounted price of £50.
We hope the discount will help support developers by giving them a new route to get their products to market. The review offered by ORCHA includes a report outlining areas of strength and potential development and approved apps made available via our portals to public health and care professionals.
Sophie Bates, commercial partnerships and projects manager at Yorkshire & Humber Academic Health Science Network, said: “The region has a great community of app developers already working in the health sector with the potential for more to enter this market.
“Working with ORCHA we will open up new markets, and ensure apps are fit for purpose and commercially successful. We are delighted that the partnership is already supporting our communities, from independent app developers right up to Johnson & Johnson.”
Our chief executive Liz Ashall-Payne, said: “We want to support app developers by offering a new route to market and showcasing the very best health apps. App developers we work with benefit from impartial feedback and comparison with others in the market to improve their product. This partnership can create a thriving market place for apps that really benefit people and communities.”
Read the original article at https://digitalhealthage.com/health-app-developers-get-support-in-yorkshire-and-humber/