TY  - JOUR
AU  - Barber-Gumbs, Tai
AU  - Trolle Lagerros, Ylva
AU  - Sena, Laura M
AU  - Gittelsohn, Joel
AU  - Chang, Larry W
AU  - Zachary, Wayne W
AU  - Surkan, Pamela J
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/2/26
TI  - Perspectives From Underserved African Americans and Their Health Care Providers on the Development of a Diabetes Self-Management Smartphone App: Qualitative Exploratory Study
JO  - JMIR Form Res
SP  - e18224
VL  - 5
IS  - 2
KW  - diabetes
KW  - mHealth
KW  - type 2 diabetes mellitus
KW  - diabetes self-management
KW  - mobile app
KW  - mobile phone
AB  - Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) affects approximately 10% of the US population, disproportionately afflicting African Americans. Smartphone apps have emerged as promising tools to improve diabetes self-management, yet little is known about the use of this approach in low-income minority communities. Objective: The goal of the study was to explore which features of an app were prioritized for people with T2DM in a low-income African American community. Methods: Between February 2016 and May 2018, we conducted formative qualitative research with 78 participants to explore how a smartphone app could be used to improve diabetes self-management. Information was gathered on desired features, and app mock-ups were presented to receive comments and suggestions of improvements from smartphone users with prediabetes and T2DM, their friends and family members, and health care providers; data were collected from six interactive forums, one focus group, and 15 in-depth interviews. We carried out thematic data analysis using an inductive approach. Results: All three types of participants reported that difficulty with accessing health care was a main problem and suggested that an app could help address this. Participants also indicated that an app could provide information for diabetes education and self-management. Other suggestions included that the app should allow people with T2DM to log and track diabetes care–related behaviors and receive feedback on their progress in a way that would increase engagement in self-management among persons with T2DM. Conclusions: We identified educational and tracking smartphone features that can guide development of diabetes self-management apps for a low-income African American population. Considering those features in combination gives rise to opportunities for more advanced support, such as determining self-management recommendations based on data in users’ logs. 
SN  - 2561-326X
UR  - https://formative.jmir.org/2021/2/e18224
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/18224
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33635279
DO  - 10.2196/18224
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/18224
ER  -