Can mHealth Improve Risk Assessment in Underserved Populations? Acceptability of a Breast Health Questionnaire App in Ethnically Diverse, Older, Low-Income Women

Use of mobile health (mHealth) tools has expanded rapidly but little research has been done on its acceptability by low-income, diverse, older patient populations.To assess the attitudes of a diverse group of underserved women on the acceptability and usability of mHealth tools in a clinical setting using a breast health questionnaire application (app) at a public hospital mammography clinic.Semi-structured interviews were conducted in a breast-imaging center of an urban safety net institution from July-August 2012. Interviews included pre- and post-questions. Women completed the Athena breast health questionnaire app on an iPad and were asked about their experience and ways to improve the tool.Fifteen women age 45-79 years from diverse ethnic and educational backgrounds were interviewed. The majority of women, 11 of 15, preferred the Athena app over a paper version and all the women thought the app was easy to use. Two Spanish-speaking Latinas preferred paper; and two women, with limited mobile phone use, did not have a preference. Many women indicated that it would be necessary to have staff available for instruction and assistance if the app were to be implemented.mHealth tools are an acceptable, if not preferred, method of collecting health information for diverse, older, low-income women. Further studies are required to evaluate the reliability and accuracy of data collection using mHealth tools in underserved populations. mHealth tools should be explored as a novel way to engage diverse populations to improve clinical care and bridge gaps in health disparities.