Dive Brief:
- A new study from Columbia University's School of Nursing reveals that mobile apps with clinical decision support tools are between four and 44 times more successful in helping clinicians identify and diagnose chronic health issues like obesity, smoking addiction and depression.
- The study evaluated 34,349 patient exams by 363 RNs in nurse practitioner programs at Columbia Nursing, with students randomly assigned to use mobile apps with or without decision support for guideline-based care.
- Nurses using the enhanced apps were 44 times more likely to diagnose adult depression; seven times more likely to correctly diagnose obesity; five times more likely to diagnose tobacco use; and four times more likely to diagnose pediatric depression.
Dive Insight:
This study is significant not because of its use of mobile technology, but for identifying the tool that separates readily-accessible data from available data that's difficult to access. After all, with EHRs and coordinated care and HIEs gaining ground, it's not that nurses lack patient data. Being able to access it quickly before or during an exam, however, is key to efficient diagnosis practices.
"The app may have worked because, unlike software aimed at physicians that focuses more on diagnostic codes needed for medical billing, it prompted nurse practitioners to follow evidence-based clinical guidelines to screen, diagnose, and manage specific conditions and encouraged detailed conversations with patients about their health," Bakken added in the release.
That's a key distinction, because the apps enabled the nurses to combine the empirical data from the app and anecdotal data from the patient in order to achieve a more reliable diagnosis. This is a great example of technology with a directed purpose, as opposed to tech for tech's sake. The simplicity and intuitiveness of these apps are powerful tools, and studies like this one help guide the direction of innovation.