Development and evaluation of mobile application to maintain patient safety in the hospital

Abstract

Patient participation in patient safety activities in care processes is an essential element of safer care. Patients play an important role in preventing patient safety incidents and improving health outcomes. Therefore, healthcare providers need to develop and provide educational materials to increase patient awareness and participation. Aim This study was conducted with the aim of developing a mobile application to increase the awareness and participation of patients and their companions and to evaluate the impact of the mobile application on improving the awareness and participation of consumers in patient safety. Methods A quasi-experimental design was adopted. We developed a mobile app based on needs assessment, literature review, and gathering patient safety topics. The target population included patients admitted to Valiasr Hospital in Tabriz. The sample extraction method was randomly available, 9 patients from the surgery department, 6 patients from the internal department and 7 patients from the obstetrics department participated in the study. How to install, how to use, and the benefits of using the application were explained to the users. Final user satisfaction was evaluated using a questionnaire. To assess participants' experiences, qualitative data were collected through interviews and open-ended responses to an end-user satisfaction survey. Results The designed application has two parts, specific cases and general cases, where the specific cases include 3 sections: surgery, obstetrics section and internal section, where each section contains subsections related to that section in order to ensure the safety of hospitalized patients. In the section of general cases, information is also included for each patient hospitalized in line with their safety. The findings from the application program reported that 70% of the users of the application program were the companions of the patient and 30% were the patients themselves. The average score given to the program by the participants from the range of one to five points is estimated at 3.75. . According to the evaluation, the greatest effect of using the application was on raising awareness about the principles of hand hygiene in the hospital, and the least effect of the application was on the interaction of the participants with the medical staff during the hospitalization period. 80% of users said that they recommend this application to others. Participants expressed the understanding that patients can play an important role in improving patient safety. conclusion This study showed that educating health consumers through a mobile application with useful information improves awareness and consequently patient participation in patient safety activities. Educational materials and patient engagement tools can stimulate health-related behaviors in health consumers.