Technology Improvement for Children’s Health in Suburban Areas: A Self-Diagnosing Health Application as an Integration Approach for Health Practitioners

Abstract

The model of 4.0 era information technology is a breakthrough that accords the convenience of an integrative, responsive, and direct activity between users and providers. Moreover, the urban-suburban contexts are now more adaptable as tools and infrastructure have been developed across regions to accelerate the advances in information technology. Hence, the use of information technology has become a promising instrument for the increase of health awareness in parents. Mobile phone technology is now accessible and it can enhance the knowledge of parents in circumstances of emergency pertaining to the health of their children. This information can also guide parents in deciding whether or not the condition they face is an emergency, and the appropriate homecare they can undertake before visiting a medical professional. This study aimed to develop a suitable mhealth application for Indonesian parents using symptombased questions and offering homecare options. A mobile phone-based application based on a symptom-based approach was developed with the help of several experienced physicians and with current medical evidence. The user interface was made simple with interactive questions for they easy access of parents. This application was then implemented on a group of parents of average socioeconomic and education background. A focus group discussion was subsequently conducted to evaluate the product and as a medium of sharing knowledge pertaining to child emergency situations and to later introduce the application. The session ended with a workshop on the use of the application. These activities accorded several insights: a positive response was obtained with regard to the clear directions for the detection of symptoms in children and the helpful homecare recommendations; however, a negative feedback was received about the use of medical terminology and about the user interface. The use of m-health for parents in developing countries is a promising instrument for the increase of parental awareness. This application should be further developed in the future to become more practicable and to enhance its ease of use by parents. Keywords—self-diagnosing application, urban health, technology for health, mobile phone application, homecare for