Personal Health Library App for Formerly Incarcerated Individuals

Overseen By Kimberly Vasquez, MPH

Age: 18+

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: Yale University

Disqualifiers: Visual, cognitive, language, relocation

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 4

100 Participants Needed

Trial Summary

What is the purpose of this trial?

This is a randomized pilot study to test the acceptance and use of PerHL among formerly incarcerated individuals

Do I need to stop my current medications for this trial?

The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications.

What data supports the effectiveness of the treatment Personal Health Library App for Formerly Incarcerated Individuals?

Research shows that mobile health apps can help people manage their health by encouraging healthy behaviors and improving conditions like diabetes. Apps like My Wellness Coach have been effective in promoting behavior change among underserved populations, which suggests that similar apps could be beneficial for formerly incarcerated individuals. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Is the Personal Health Library App safe for formerly incarcerated individuals?

There is no specific safety data available for the Personal Health Library App or its related versions like Epic®MyChart for formerly incarcerated individuals. The existing research focuses on health literacy and the challenges faced by this population, but does not provide safety information for the app itself. ^{6 7 8 9 10}

How is the Personal Health Library App treatment different from other treatments for formerly incarcerated individuals?

The Personal Health Library App treatment is unique because it combines a personal health library with MyChart, allowing formerly incarcerated individuals to access and manage their health data through a mobile app. This approach empowers users by providing them with direct control over their health information, which is not typically available in standard treatments for this population. ^{11 12 13 14 15}

Research Team

Karen Wang, MD, MHS

Principal Investigator

Yale University

Eligibility Criteria

This trial is for English-speaking adults over 18 who have been released from prison within the last year, are engaged in primary care, and have at least one chronic condition. It's not suitable for those planning to move soon or with cognitive, visual impairments or language barriers.

Inclusion Criteria

engaged in primary care in the community

English-speaking

have been released from a correctional facility in the past year

Exclusion Criteria

planned relocation

You have issues with thinking or memory.

I have a visual impairment.

Timeline

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Baseline Assessment

Participants complete a baseline assessment and are randomly assigned to intervention or control group

1 week

1 visit (in-person)

Intervention

Participants in the intervention group use PerHL, while control group uses MyChart. Meetings with RA at baseline, 1, and 3 months

3 months

3 visits (in-person)

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for acceptance, perceived usefulness, and other outcomes

3 months

Treatment Details

Interventions

• Epic®MyChart
• Personal Health Library (PerHL)
• Personal Health Library (PerHL) + MyChart

Trial Overview The study is testing a Personal Health Library (PerHL) combined with MyChart against just using MyChart. PerHL aims to help manage personal health data post-incarceration. Participants will be randomly assigned to either group.

Participant Groups

Group I: Access to Personal Health Library (PerHL) + MyChart Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Participants randomized to the PerHL arm will have access to PerHL and the standard of care patient portal (Epic®MyChart).

Group II: Control - MyChart Active Control 1 Intervention

Participants randomized to the control arm will receive the standard of care patient portal (Epic®MyChart).

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

Yale University

Lead Sponsor

Trials

1,963

Recruited

3,046,000+

National Library of Medicine (NLM)

Collaborator

Trials

42

Recruited

108,000+

Findings from Research

Mobile health (mHealth) apps are categorized by their functions, such as behavior change and self-management, but there is limited clinical guidance on their effective use in patient care, highlighting a gap in evidence-based recommendations.

Data security and patient privacy are major concerns when using mHealth apps, and there is a need for better involvement of patients in the development of guidelines to ensure that these apps meet their needs and improve clinical outcomes.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

What is the clinical value of mHealth for patients? Rowland, SP., Fitzgerald, JE., Holme, T., et al.[2023]

The mobile app My Wellness Coach (MWC) showed promising feasibility and acceptability among underserved populations, with 76% of participants setting health goals and significant improvements in overall wellbeing and physical health after 3 months.

Participants using MWC in a group setting had a higher goal completion rate (60%) compared to those using it individually (20%), suggesting that group support may enhance the app's effectiveness in promoting behavior change.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

My Wellness Coach: evaluation of a mobile app designed to promote integrative health among underserved populations. Yuan, NP., Brooks, AJ., Burke, MK., et al.[2023]

In a randomized trial involving 105 participants, two dietary recording app prototypes were tested for accuracy and efficiency, both achieving over 98% accuracy in recording food intake.

The self-chosen tab app was significantly more time-efficient for inputting food items compared to the autonomous exhaustive list app, although users occasionally missed selecting food attributes, which did not happen with the exhaustive list.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Evaluating Mobile Health Apps for Customized Dietary Recording for Young Adults and Seniors: Randomized Controlled Trial. Liu, YC., Chen, CH., Tsou, YC., et al.[2020]

References

1. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Tablet-Aided BehavioraL intervention EffecT on Self-management skills (TABLETS) for Diabetes. [2023]

2. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

What is the clinical value of mHealth for patients? [2023]

3. Korea (South) pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Effects of a mobile healthcare service provided by public health centers on practicing of health behaviors and health risk factors. [2020]

4. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

My Wellness Coach: evaluation of a mobile app designed to promote integrative health among underserved populations. [2023]

5. Switzerland pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Eliciting Requirements for a Diabetes Self-Management Application for Underserved Populations: A Multi-Stakeholder Analysis. [2022]

6. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Health Literacy Among a Formerly Incarcerated Population Using Data from the Transitions Clinic Network. [2019]

7. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Using a community-engaged health informatics approach to develop a web analytics research platform for sharing data with community stakeholders. [2019]

8. Canada pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Personal Health Libraries for People Returning From Incarceration: Protocol for a Qualitative Study. [2023]

9. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The Impact of Incarceration on Health and Health Care Utilization: a System Perspective. [2021]

10. Brazil pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Prevalence of chronic noncommunicable diseases in the prison system: a public health challenge. [2022]

11. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

An iOS Framework for the Indivo X Personally Controlled Health Record. [2021]

12. Ireland pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mobile personal health records: an evaluation of features and functionality. [2018]

13. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mobile health application platform 'Corrie' personalises and empowers the heart attack recovery patient experience in the hospital and at home for an underserved heart attack survivor. [2020]

14. Canada pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Evaluating Mobile Health Apps for Customized Dietary Recording for Young Adults and Seniors: Randomized Controlled Trial. [2020]

15. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Which Users Should Be the Focus of Mobile Personal Health Records? Analysis of User Characteristics Influencing Usage of a Tethered Mobile Personal Health Record. [2018]