Although the role of mobile technology is still emerging in the field of medicine, it is inevitable that it will become a mainstream complement to Western and traditional medicine because of our increasingly connected culture. As a society, we are used to having limitless information at our fingertips, but it can be very overwhelming and even dangerous for people looking for specific medical advice.
The University of Michigan has created a mobile app called Breast Cancer Ally to assist their patients and physicians during the treatment and recovery phases of breast cancer. The use of the app helps to improve the delivery of care to the patients through various features as well as amplifying the communication between doctors and their patients. The app is interactive in nature, patient-specific, and is customizable to the type of breast cancer the patient has, delivering targeted information that is patient/user-friendly right when it is needed. Patients are prompted by the app to enter information such as current symptoms so that they can receive related educational information and instructions. It also includes useful resources such as a library of relevant educational information specific to the type of breast cancer and treatments of patients, post-operative exercises, diet and mental health support to enhance recovery, and a calendar to track their treatments, symptoms, and appointments. All of the data recorded by the patient into the app generates a report that is shared with their physician so that they have current, comprehensive details about their patients. Researchers at the university also track the data from Breast Cancer Ally to better study the diseases and effects of treatments.
Hi Kendall, thanks for this post, it provided me a lot of food for thought. Although delivering timely and useful information is essential, I think the real added value for this type of app would be in its ability to create a community of users who can support each other. My family farmed in rural Alberta and about 15 years ago my mother had to deal with breast cancer. Living and working on a farm doesn’t permit endless hours to sit in from a computer, quite the opposite actually; it requires lots of hard work both in the home and in the field. One of the affordances of mobile is convenience and in-the-moment access, and while the burden of isolation really compounded her hardship, access to this kind of mobile tech would have made a real difference. Mobile tech can bring peace of mind and comfort to those who need a specialized support network close at hand all the time.