BACKGROUND
Recent advances in smartphones and wearable devices have led to an increasing number of mHealth mobile applications (mHealth apps), enabling consumers to obtain drug information without the need for hospital visits. Consequently, interest in these apps has increased. However, a comprehensive analysis or quality evaluation has yet to be conducted for a variety of drug-related mobile apps. Content analysis and quality evaluation of mHealth apps not only show their usefulness and utility, but also provide guidance for consumers in selecting and utilizing relevant content and for app developers to implement the necessary functions.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to identify and analyze drug-related mHealth apps that contain the content and functionality required by consumers for adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting.
METHODS
We evaluated the usefulness and utility of various drug-related mobile apps, both domestic (Korean) and international, and examined the main functions and features of the selected apps. To increase the reliability of the evaluation, three established assessment tools—the Mobile Application Rating Scale, its user version, and the Korean Health-IT User Evaluation Scale—were utilized. Additionally, mixed research methods comprising both quantitative and qualitative evaluations were conducted through interviews to evaluate the needs of participants regarding drug-related mobile apps and their perceptions of existing apps.
RESULTS
The results of the app quality evaluation showed that the majority of apps focus primarily on providing drug information and lacked features for recording, searching, and reporting ADRs from consumers. Although some international apps have features for reporting 10drug side effects, no such features are available in domestic apps.
CONCLUSIONS
In the future, we intend to develop an mHealth app with features necessary for recording and reporting ADRs the results of this study.