Usability and Feasibility of PmEB: A Mobile Phone Application for Monitoring Real Time Caloric Balance

Christopher C. Tsai; Gunny  Lee; Fred Raab; Gregory J. Norman; Timothy  Sohn; William G.  Griswold; Kevin  Patrick

1st International ICST Conference on Pervasive Computing Technologies for Healthcare

Research Article

Usability and Feasibility of PmEB: A Mobile Phone Application for Monitoring Real Time Caloric Balance

Cite: BibTeX Plain Text

@INPROCEEDINGS{10.1109/PCTHEALTH.2006.361659,
    author={Christopher C. Tsai and Gunny  Lee and Fred Raab and Gregory J. Norman and Timothy  Sohn and William G.  Griswold and Kevin  Patrick},
    title={Usability and Feasibility of PmEB: A Mobile Phone Application for Monitoring Real Time Caloric Balance},
    proceedings={1st International ICST Conference on Pervasive Computing Technologies for Healthcare},
    publisher={IEEE},
    proceedings_a={PERVASIVEHEALTH},
    year={2007},
    month={5},
    keywords={Cellular phones  Costs  Employee welfare  Iterative methods  Mobile handsets  Monitoring  Particle measurements  Public healthcare  Research and development  Usability},
    doi={10.1109/PCTHEALTH.2006.361659}
}

Christopher C. Tsai
Gunny Lee
Fred Raab
Gregory J. Norman
Timothy Sohn
William G. Griswold
Kevin Patrick
Year: 2007
Usability and Feasibility of PmEB: A Mobile Phone Application for Monitoring Real Time Caloric Balance
PERVASIVEHEALTH
IEEE
DOI: 10.1109/PCTHEALTH.2006.361659

Christopher C. Tsai¹^,*, Gunny Lee²^,*, Fred Raab³^,*, Gregory J. Norman³^,*, Timothy Sohn⁴^,*, William G. Griswold⁴^,*, Kevin Patrick³^,*

1: Decision Systems Group, Brigham & Women's Hospital, Boston, MA4 02115 USA
2: SCIL Group, Stanford University, 353 Serra Mall, Stanford, CA 94305 USA
3: Family and Preventive Medicine, University of California, San Diego, CA 92122 USA
4: Computer Science and Engineering, University of California, San Diego, CA 92122 USA

*Contact email: ctsai@dsg.harvard.edu, gulee@stanford.edu, fraab@paceproject.org, gnorman@paceproject.org, tsohn@ucsd.edu, wgg@ucsd.edu, kpatrick@paceproject.org

Abstract

Obesity is a major public health challenge with over 65% of U.S. adults either overweight or obese. Estimated annual costs of obesity are around $78.5 billion. Self-monitoring is a critical skill for successful weight management. However, self-monitoring is labor-intensive and compliance is often difficult. In this paper, we describe the Patient-Centered Assessment and Counseling Mobile Energy Balance (PmEB) cell phone application that allows users to self-monitor caloric balance in real time. We developed and applied a four-phase iterative research and development methodology. We conducted a usability study and a preliminary feasibility study. The one month feasibility study measured compliance and satisfaction among a sample of 15 participants randomized to one of three groups: 1) a paper diary group, 2) a PmEB group with one daily prompt, and 3) a PmEB group with three daily prompts. PmEB scored highly on usability, compliance, and satisfaction. In addition, cell phone group users scored PmEB the same as or better than Paper Group members scored the paper diary in nearly all categories. Thematic analysis of comments revealed very positive reviews of PmEB as well as areas for improvement. PmEB is both usable and feasible for self-monitoring in weight management, and our iterative pilot study methodology was effective in improving its usability

Keywords: Cellular phones Costs Employee welfare Iterative methods Mobile handsets Monitoring Particle measurements Public healthcare Research and development Usability

Published: 2007-05-21
Publisher: IEEE
Modified: 2011-11-07

: http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/PCTHEALTH.2006.361659