title: Building Research Capacity: Results of a Feasibility Study Using a Novel mHealth Epidemiological Data Collection System Within a Gestational Diabetes Population.
abstract: Public health researchers have traditionally relied on individual self-reporting when collecting much epidemiological surveillance data. Data acquisition can be costly, difficult to acquire, and the data often notoriously unreliable. An interesting option for the collection of individual health (or indicators of individual health) data is the personal smartphone. Smartphones are ubiquitous, and the required infrastructure is well-developed across Canada, including many remote areas. Researchers and health professionals are asking themselves how they might exploit increasing smartphone uptake for the purposes of data collection, hopefully leading to improved individual and public health. A novel smartphone-based epidemiological data collection and analysis system has been developed by faculty and students from the CEPHIL (Computational Epidemiology and Public Health Informatics) Lab in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Saskatchewan. A pilot feasibility study was then designed to examine possible relationships between smartphone sensor data, surveys and individual clinical data within a population of pregnant women. The study focused on the development of Gestational Diabetes (GDM), a transient condition during pregnancy, but with serious potential post-birth complications for both mother and child. The researchers questioned whether real-time smartphone data could improve the clinical management and outcomes of women at risk for developing GDM, enabling earlier treatment. The initial results from this small study did not show improved prediction of GDM, but did demonstrate that real-time individual health and sensor data may be readily collected and analyzed efficiently while maintaining confidentiality. Because the original version of the data collection software could only run on Android phones, this often meant the study participants were required to carry two phones, and this often meant the study phone was not carried, and therefore data not collected. The lessons learned will greatly inform future research.
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Department of Computer Science, 176 Thorvaldson Bldg., 110 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5C9, Canada.
authors.forename: Allen
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: McLean
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Department of Computer Science, 176 Thorvaldson Bldg., 110 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5C9, Canada.
authors.forename: Nathaniel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Osgood
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, College of Medicine, 5D40 Health Sciences Bldg., 107 Wiggins Road, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E5, Canada.
authors.forename: Jill
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Newstead-Angel
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Department of Computer Science, 176 Thorvaldson Bldg., 110 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5C9, Canada.
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Stanley
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Department of Computer Science, 176 Thorvaldson Bldg., 110 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5C9, Canada.
authors.forename: Dylan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Knowles
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Department of Computer Science, 176 Thorvaldson Bldg., 110 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5C9, Canada.
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: van der Kamp
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, Department of Computer Science, 176 Thorvaldson Bldg., 110 Science Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5C9, Canada.
authors.forename: Weicheng
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Qian
authors.affiliation: University of Saskatchewan, College of Medicine, 5D40 Health Sciences Bldg., 107 Wiggins Road, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E5, Canada.
authors.forename: Roland
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dyck
mesh_terms: D002170:Canada; D016640:Diabetes, Gestational; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D000068997:Smartphone; D017216:Telemedicine
keywords: Gestational Diabetes; Health Informatics; Smartphone; iEpi; mHealth