Dataset Information

Content guidance for mobile phones short message service (SMS)-based antiretroviral therapy adherence and appointment reminders: a review of the literature.

ABSTRACT: Mobile phones are increasingly being used to support health activities, including the care and management of people living with HIV/AIDS. Short message service (SMS) has been explored as a means to optimize and support behaviour change. However, there is minimal guidance on messaging content development. The purpose of this review was to inform the content of SMS messages for mobile health (mHealth) initiatives designed to support anti-retroviral therapy adherence and clinic appointment keeping in resource-limited settings. PubMed, OvidMedline, Google Scholar, K4Health's mHealth Evidence database, the mHealth Working Group project resource, and Health COMpass were searched. A request to online communities for recommendations on message content was also made. 1010 unique sources were identified, of which 51 were included. The information was organized into three categories: pre-message development, message development, and security and privacy. Fifteen of the publications explicitly provided their message content. Important lessons when developing the content of SMS were: (1) conducting formative research; (2) grounding content in behaviour change theory; and (3) reviewing proposed content with experts. Best practices exist for developing message content for behaviour change. Efforts should be continued to apply lessons learned from the existing literature to inform mHealth initiatives supporting HIV/AIDS care and treatment.

SUBMITTER: Kerrigan A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6408301 | biostudies-literature | 2019 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Content guidance for mobile phones short message service (SMS)-based antiretroviral therapy adherence and appointment reminders: a review of the literature.

Kerrigan Andrew A Kaonga Nadi N NN Tang Alice M AM Jordan Michael R MR Hong Steven Y SY

AIDS care 20181129 5

Mobile phones are increasingly being used to support health activities, including the care and management of people living with HIV/AIDS. Short message service (SMS) has been explored as a means to optimize and support behaviour change. However, there is minimal guidance on messaging content development. The purpose of this review was to inform the content of SMS messages for mobile health (mHealth) initiatives designed to support anti-retroviral therapy adherence and clinic appointment keeping ...[more]

PMID: 30497271

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Project description:BackgroundDespite the extensive implementation of control measures and achievements in morbidity reductions, malaria continues to contribute to substantial morbidity and mortality in children under-five. Innovative approaches involving the use of mobile phones have been suggested to improve health outcomes. However, evidence of its effect on reducing the prevalence of malaria is limited. This study, therefore, aimed to assess the effect of a theory-driven mHealth intervention on the prevalence of malaria among children under-five living in rural districts of Ghana.MethodsWe conducted a quasi-experimental study of a 12-month intervention using a random sample of 332 caregivers with children under-five from two rural districts, assigned to either an intervention or a control group. Caregivers in the intervention group received voice short message service (SMS) on malaria prevention based on a behavior change theory to improve their health behaviors and practice, once a week for twelve months, while caregivers in the control group received none. Pre- and post-intervention assessment of the treatment effect (ATT) on malaria in children under-five was conducted using propensity score and difference-in-difference (DiD) analyses.ResultsAmong children whose caregivers received the intervention, the prevalence of malaria decreased from 58.4% at baseline to 37.8% at endline (difference: -20.6%; 95% CI: - 31.1, - 10.1) compared with children in the control group, where a reduction of 65.0 to 59.9% (difference - 5.1%; 95% CI: - 15.5, 5.4) was observed. The treatment effect at endline revealed a statistically significant reduction in malaria prevalence (ATT: -0.214; 95% CI: - 0.36, - 0.07) compared with the baseline (ATT: -0.035; 95% CI: - 0.16, 0.09). Overall, the intervention effect showed a significant reduction in the prevalence of malaria among children under-five was positive (DiD: - 0.154; p = 0.043).ConclusionThe results of the study indicate the effectiveness of mobile phone SMS as a control tool for reducing the burden of malaria in children under-five.

Project description:BackgroundMissed hospital appointments are a major cause of inefficiency worldwide. Healthcare providers are increasingly using Short Message Service reminders to reduce 'Did Not Attend' (DNA) rates. Systematic reviews show that sending such reminders is effective, but there is no evidence on whether their impact is affected by their content. Accordingly, we undertook two randomised controlled trials that tested the impact of rephrasing appointment reminders on DNA rates in the United Kingdom.Trial methodsParticipants were outpatients with a valid mobile telephone number and an outpatient appointment between November 2013 and January 2014 (Trial One, 10,111 participants) or March and May 2014 (Trial Two, 9,848 participants). Appointments were randomly allocated to one of four reminder messages, which were issued five days in advance. Message assignment was then compared against appointment outcomes (appointment attendance, DNA, cancellation by patient).ResultsIn Trial One, a message including the cost of a missed appointment to the health system produced a DNA rate of 8.4%, compared to 11.1% for the existing message (OR 0.74, 95% CI 0.61-0.89, P<0.01). Trial Two replicated this effect (DNA rate 8.2%), but also found that expressing the same concept in general terms was significantly less effective (DNA rate 9.9%, OR 1.22, 95% CI 1.00-1.48, P<0.05). Moving from the existing reminder to the more effective costs message would result in 5,800 fewer missed appointments per year in the National Health Service Trust in question, at no additional cost. The study's main limitations are that it took place in a single location in England, and that it required accurate phone records, which were only obtained for 20% of eligible patients. We conclude that missed appointments can be reduced, for no additional cost, by introducing persuasive messages to appointment reminders. Future studies could examine the impact of varying reminder messages in other health systems.Trial registrationControlled-Trials.com 49432571.

Dataset Information

Content guidance for mobile phones short message service (SMS)-based antiretroviral therapy adherence and appointment reminders: a review of the literature.

Publications

Content guidance for mobile phones short message service (SMS)-based antiretroviral therapy adherence and appointment reminders: a review of the literature.

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