Managing chronic pathologies with a stepped mHealth-based approach in clinical psychology and medicine.
Chronic diseases and conditions typically require long-term monitoring and treatment protocols both in traditional settings and in out-patient frameworks. The economic burden of chronic conditions is a key challenge and new and mobile technologies could offer good solutions. mHealth could be considered an evolution of eHealth and could be defined as the practice of medicine and public health supported by mobile communication devices. mHealth approach could overcome limitations linked with the traditional, restricted, and highly expensive in-patient treatment of many chronic pathologies. Possible applications include stepped mHealth approach, where patients can be monitored and treated in their everyday contexts. Unfortunately, many barriers for the spread of mHealth are still present. Due the significant impact of psychosocial factors on disease evolution, psychotherapies have to be included into the chronic disease protocols. Existing psychological theories of health behavior change have to be adapted to the new technological contexts and requirements. In conclusion, clinical psychology and medicine have to face the "chronic care management" challenge in both traditional and mHealth settings.
Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, Ospedale San Giuseppe Verbania, Italy ; Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Milan Milan, Italy.
Gianluca
G
Castelnuovo
Department of Informatics, Systems and Communication, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca Milano, Italy.
Italo
I
Zoppis
Laboratory of Medical Informatics, Department of Epidemiology, Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico - Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri Milano, Italy.
Eugenio
E
Santoro
Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, Ospedale San Giuseppe Verbania, Italy ; Department of Psychology, University of Bergamo Bergamo, Italy.
Martina
M
Ceccarini
Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, Ospedale San Giuseppe Verbania, Italy ; Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Milan Milan, Italy.
Giada
G
Pietrabissa
Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, Ospedale San Giuseppe Verbania, Italy ; Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Milan Milan, Italy.
Gian Mauro
GM
Manzoni
Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, Ospedale San Giuseppe Verbania, Italy ; Department of Psychology, University of Bergamo Bergamo, Italy.
Stefania
S
Corti
Department of Psychology, University of Bergamo Bergamo, Italy.
Maria
M
Borrello
Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Milan Milan, Italy.
Emanuele Maria
EM
Giusti
Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, Ospedale San Giuseppe Verbania, Italy.
Roberto
R
Cattivelli
Department of Electronics, Information and Bioengineering, Politecnico di Milano Milano, Italy.
Anna
A
Melesi
Department of Informatics, Systems and Communication, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca Milano, Italy.
Giancarlo
G
Mauri
Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, Ospedale San Giuseppe Verbania, Italy ; Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Milan Milan, Italy.
Enrico
E
Molinari
Department of Informatics, Systems and Communication, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca Milano, Italy.
Francesco
F
Sicurello
behavioral medicine; chronic care management; clinical psychology; e-health; health psychology; mHealth; new technologies; rehabilitation