viernes, 1 de febrero de 2013

Reaching women through health inf... [Am J Health Promot. 2013 Jan-Feb] - PubMed - NCBI

Am J Health Promot. 2013 Jan-Feb;27(3 Suppl):eS11-20. doi: 10.4278/ajhp.1200113-QUAN-18.

Reaching women through health information technology: the gabby preconception care system.

Gardiner P, Hempstead MB, Ring L, Bickmore T, Yinusa-Nyahkoon L, Tran H, Paasche-Orlow M, Damus K, Jack B.

Abstract

Abstract Purpose. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have endorsed the concept of preconception care (PCC). New tools must be developed to promote PCC. Design. Development and testing of a health information technology system to provide PCC. Setting. An urban safety net hospital and an urban university. Subjects. Community recruitment of 31 women in focus groups and 15 women participating in observed usability testing; 9 students recruited from the Office of Minority Health Preconception Peer Educators program participated in pilot testing for 2 months. Intervention. Online interactive animated character ("Gabby") designed to identify and modify preconception risks. Measures. Qualitative transcripts, preconception risk assessment, server data for system usage, self-administered satisfaction surveys, and follow-up phone calls. Analysis. Descriptive statistics of subjects' demographics, satisfaction, PCC risks, and system usage. Transcripts coded using NVIVO. Results. Subjects (n = 24) reported an average of 23 preconception risks; in the pilot, 83% of risks added to the "My Health To-Do List" were addressed by the subject. Seventy-three percent of risks identified as contemplative progressed to action or maintenance. Differences were noted in effectiveness of the system based on initial stage of change for each risk. Conclusion. Results suggest that the PCC system could be effective in influencing positive behavior change. Adding stage of change-focused functionality might have added benefits. This system has great potential to assist in the delivery of PCC.

PMID:: 23286652; [PubMed - in process]; Health IT Tool Delivers Preconception Screening and Education

Virtual preconception care systems may be effective in influencing positive behavior change, and health IT-enabled systems have a significant potential to assist in the delivery of preconception care, according to a recent study supported by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The study, “Reaching Women Through Health Information Technology: The Gabby Preconception Care System,” which appeared in the January edition of the American Journal of Health Promotion, evaluated the effectiveness of a health IT facilitated intervention to increase awareness of preconception health among minority women. The authors of this pilot study programmed an avatar named “Gabby” to act as a virtual patient advocate and to deliver interactive screenings to help women identify health risks, assess readiness for change, and learn about lifestyle factors that influence preconception health. Based on the interaction between each participant and the avatar, a health “To Do List” was generated. The study found that participants addressed 83 percent of the issues that they had identified through their lists. For more details, select: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23286652.