Mobile healthcare companies can increase adoption of the new technology by understanding their customers' "activation levels" in light of a newly released Harris Poll showing strong physician and consumer interest in the emerging industry.
Conducted in partnership with CTIA (Cellular Telephone Industry of America), the poll gauged the attitudes of consumers and physicians toward mobile healthcare services such as smart phones, wearable bio-sensors and chronic disease monitoring devices. The findings, which also provide insight into respondents' motivation and health behaviors, are being presented at 12:45 p.m. PDT today at the CTIA Mobile IT and Entertainment Show at the San Diego Convention Center.
The survey included questions from the Patient Activation Measure(TM) (PAM(TM)), a tool used to assess individuals' knowledge, skills and confidence in playing a role in their own health and healthcare, as well as a sister measure that assesses physician support of patient activation. The PAM segments consumers into one of four progressively higher "activation levels" based on their answers - shedding light on how likely they will engage with mobile devices and how to develop more effective communications and support programs.
"The mobile health industry stands to gain a deeper understanding of its users by identifying their level of activation and self-management competencies essential to successful adoption," said Chris Delaney, Chief Executive Officer of Insignia Health, which markets and licenses the PAM. "These results provide insight into how device manufacturers and physicians can help individuals overcome barriers to using these new mobile technologies as important tools to support self-management and promote well-being."
More than 3,473 consumers and doctors responded to the survey, which was administered to a random sample of the U.S. population and a targeted physician sample from the Harris Poll Online. Results showed that almost eight in ten Americans (78%) expressed some level of interest. Both groups agreed that mobile health would make medical care easier to obtain and may reduce the number of office visits.
Mobile healthcare was defined as mobile solutions that would allow patients to communicate directly with their physician or allow their physician to monitor, diagnose conditions and administer medications remotely.
The Patient Activation Measure questions were included as a way to assess respondents' self-management abilities along a continuum of increasing activation. At the low end of the spectrum (levels 1 and 2), individuals tend to be passive with regard to managing their health, and may fail to see the connection between their own behaviors and health outcomes. At the high end (levels 3 and 4), individuals understand that relationship and have become good self-managers across a constellation of behaviors.
The Harris Poll showed that in general, belief in the benefits of mobile health varies greatly by level of activation as does the speed at which individuals will accept the technology into their lives.
Other results show: