The Effect of Mobile Application Follow‐Up on Treatment Compliance and Self‐Care Management in Patients With Hypertension: Randomized Controlled Trial
Alev Yildirim Keskin, Nurhan Özpancar Şolpan, Hasan DeğirmenciABSTRACT
Background
Hypertension (HT) is a global health problem. Although there are effective treatment protocols, patients have difficulty in adapting to regular use of drugs, diet, and lifestyle changes. Mobile apps can be a potential alternative for managing HT and improving self‐care behavior.
Purpose
This study aimed to determine the effect of mobile application follow‐up on treatment compliance and self‐care management in patients with HT.
Methods
This randomized controlled trial was conducted in November 2021 and March 2022 with 40 experimental and 40 control group patients with HT. Research data were collected using a patient information form, “Hill‐Bone Hypertension Treatment Compliance Scale (HBHTTCS),” “Hypertension Self‐Care Profile‐Motivation Scale (HTSPMS),” a mobile application program (daily blood pressure, pulse, medication, diet, exercise tracking) uploaded to the mobile phones of the patients, and individual motivational messages.
Results
The mean total score of the HBHTTCS at Week 6 was 14.57 ± 1.89 and the mean total score of the HTSPMS was 78.15 ± 2.05. There was a statistically significant difference in mean total HTSPMS (p = 0.000) and HBHTTCS (p = 0.000) scores and mean scores on medical (p = 0.002) and nutrition (p = 0.002) subscales of HBHTTCS between the first interview (1st‐week follow‐up) and the last interview (6th‐week follow‐up) of patients in the intervention group.
Conclusions
This study showed that mobile application follow‐up increased motivation levels and treatment compliance in patients with HT and resulted in better self‐care. These positive findings indicate importance of integrating mobile applications in the disease management of HT patients.
Trial Registration
ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT05334446,