Access to internet, smartphone usage, and acceptability of mobile health technology among cancer patients

Purpose: The use of mobile health (mHealth) technologies to augment patient care, enables providers to communicate remotely with patients enhancing the quality of care and patient engagement. Few studies addressed barriers to its implementation, especially in medically underserved populations. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 151 cancer patients was conducted at an academic medical center in the United States. A trained interviewer performed structured interviews regarding the barriers and facilitators of current and desired utilization of technology for healthcare services. Results: Of the 151 participants, 35.8% were male and ages ranged from 21-104 years. Only 73.5% of participants currently have daily access to internet, and 68.2% currently own a smartphone capable of displaying mobile applications. Among all participants, utilization of a daily mHealth application was significantly higher in patients with a college-level degree (OR; 2.78, p<0.01) and lower in older patients (OR; 0.05, p<0.01). Differences in utilization when adjusted for current smartphone use and daily access to internet were nonsignificant. Among smartphone users, the desire to increase cancer knowledge was associated with a higher likelihood of utilizing a mHealth application (OR; 261.53, p<0.01). Conclusion: The study suggests the access to mobile technology is the predominant determinant of utilization. Healthcare organizations should consider these factors when launching patient engagement platforms.