Key result
A digital intervention combining a text messaging service and a smartphone app was found to be highly acceptable and motivated patients with hypertension to take their medications as prescribed.
Why the study?
The study was designed to evaluate the acceptability of a highly tailored 56-day text messaging and smartphone app prototype intervention to support adherence to anti-hypertensive medication in primary care.
Is a tailored text messaging service followed by a smartphone app acceptable to support medication adherence in patients treated for hypertension in primary care?
Is a tailored text messaging service followed by a smartphone app acceptable to support medication adherence in patients treated for hypertension in primary care?
A highly tailored digital intervention combining text messaging and a smartphone app is acceptable to patients with poorly controlled hypertension in primary care and may support medication adherence.
Acceptable tailored digital intervention for primary care hypertension adherence; hypothesis-generating, requires RCTs to assess efficacy.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: This paper describes a pilot non-randomised controlled study of a highly tailored 56-day text messaging and smartphone app prototype intervention to increase adherence to anti-hypertensive medication in primary care. The aim of this study was to evaluate the acceptability of the intervention and obtain patients' views about the intervention content, the delivery mode, and the mechanisms by which the intervention supported medication adherence. METHODS: Patients diagnosed with hypertension were invited and recruited to the study via general practice text messages and attended a face to face meeting with a member of the researcher team. Participants were asked to test the text messaging intervention for 28 consecutive days and switch to the smartphone app for 28 more days. Participants completed baseline and follow-up questionnaires and took part in semi-structured telephone interviews. Digital log files captured patients' engagement with the intervention. Participant transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise data from questionnaires and log files. A mixed methods analysis generated data to respond to the research questions. RESULTS: Seventy-nine patients expressed interest to participate in this study, of whom 23 (64% male, 82% above 60 years old) were registered to take part. With one drop-out, 22 participants tested the text messaging delivery mode (with 20 being interviewed) and four of them (17%) switched to the app (with 3 being interviewed). All participants engaged and interacted with the text messages and app notifications, and all participants found the intervention content and delivery mode acceptable. They also self-reported that the interactive elements of the intervention motivated them to take their medications as prescribed. CONCLUSION: This study provides evidence that the digital intervention is acceptable by hypertensive patients recruited in primary care. Future research could usefully investigate its feasibility and effectiveness using rigorous research methods. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN12805654.
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Kassavou et al. (2020) studied Hypertension (n=23). Text messaging service and smartphone app (PAM) was evaluated on Acceptability of the intervention. A digital intervention combining a text messaging service and a smartphone app was found to be highly acceptable and motivated patients with hypertension to take their medications as prescribed.
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