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Choice‐Based Reminder Cues: Findings From an mHealth Study to Improve Tuberculosis (TB) Treatment Adherence Among the Urban Poor in India
Author(s) -
Das Gupta Debasree,
Patel Amit,
Saxena Deepak,
Koizumi Naoru,
Trivedi Poonam,
Patel Krupali,
Raval Devang,
King Andrew,
Chandler Kerianne
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
world medical and health policy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.326
H-Index - 11
ISSN - 1948-4682
DOI - 10.1002/wmh3.337
Subject(s) - mhealth , psychological intervention , medicine , tuberculosis , environmental health , nursing , pathology
Poor treatment outcomes due to nonadherence and consequent high levels of drug resistance continue to challenge efforts to combat tuberculosis (TB) in India. Mobile health‐ or mHealth‐based reminder cues have been considered in multiple health behavior modification interventions, including TB treatment nonadherence. We conducted a quasi‐experimental study in Ahmedabad, India, to examine the effectiveness of mHealth‐based reminder cues customized to meet diverse patient needs. Results from this experiment indicate that the potential of customized mHealth reminder cues may remain unrealized unless addressed in conjunction with the multifaceted drivers of TB treatment nonadherence. The perspective we present here has broad relevance for future mHealth studies, especially in interpreting challenges that arise within resource‐scarce settings of the urban poor and prevent them from adhering to recommended TB treatment regimens.