title: Designing and Developing a Mobile Smartphone Application for Women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Followed-Up at Diabetes Outpatient Clinics in Norway.
abstract: The prevalence of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is increasing worldwide. Controlling blood sugar levels is fundamental to the management of GDM. Current practice in Norway includes patients registering blood sugar levels in a booklet and receiving verbal and/or written health information. A smartphone application may provide patients individually targeted and easily available advice to control blood sugar levels. The aim of this paper is to document the process of designing and developing a smartphone application (the Pregnant+ app) that automatically transfers blood sugar levels from the glucometer and has information about healthy eating and physical activity. This formative research included expert-group discussions among health professionals, researchers and experts in data privacy and security. User-involvement studies were conducted to discuss prototypes of the app. Results indicated that the content of the application should be easy to understand given the varying degree of patients' literacy and in line with the information they receive at clinics. The final version of the app incorporated behavior change techniques such as self-monitoring and cues to action. Results from the first round of interactions show the importance of involving expert groups and patients when developing a mobile health-care device.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, PB 4 St. Olavs plass, Oslo N-0130, Norway. lisa.garnweidner-holme@hioa.no.
authors.forename: Lisa Maria
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Garnweidner-Holme
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, PB 4 St. Olavs plass, Oslo N-0130, Norway. iren.borgen@hioa.no.
authors.forename: Iren
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Borgen
authors.affiliation: University Graduate Centre, P.O. Box 70, Kjeller N-2027, Norway. igaritano@garitano.org.
authors.forename: Iñaki
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Garitano
authors.affiliation: University Graduate Centre, P.O. Box 70, Kjeller N-2027, Norway. josef@unik.no.
authors.forename: Josef
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Noll
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, PB 4 St. Olavs plass, Oslo N-0130, Norway. mirjam.lukasse@hioa.no.
authors.forename: Mirjam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lukasse
keywords: gestational diabetes mellitus; healthy eating; mobile health care; physical activity; user-centered design