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To create a world without kidney diseases, the ASN Alliance for Kidney Health elevates care by educating and informing, driving breakthroughs and innovation, and advocating for policies that create transformative changes in kidney medicine throughout the world.

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Kidney Week

Abstract: FR-PO981

VA MobileKidney App – A Mobile Educational and Clinical Engagement Tool for Veterans with CKD and Their Providers

Session Information

Category: Bioengineering and Informatics

  • 101 Bioengineering and Informatics

Authors

  • Robey, R. Brooks, White River Junction VA Medical Center, White River Junction, Vermont, United States
  • Crowley, Susan T., VA Connecticut Health Care System, West Haven, Connecticut, United States
  • Choudhury, Devasmita, Salem VA Medical Center, Salem, Virginia, United States
Background

Patient health illiteracy and lack of accurate, reliable, and efficient mechanisms for evaluating self-care between clinic visits represent major barriers to optimal CKD management that are potentially amenable to digital telehealth solutions.

Methods

To address these barriers, we designed a secure digital application with 1) broad mobile device compatibility, 2) real time access to the CKD education and information resources housed in the cloud-based virtual VA eKidney Clinic (http://ckd.vacloud.us/), and 3) novel electronic self-care journaling capabilities viewable remotely via a VA provider-facing interface.

Results

In addition to providing unrestricted mobile access to pertinent healthcare information and educational resources, the VA MobileKidney app will allow Veterans with CKD to enter, annotate, and track self-gathered clinical information on personal mobile devices and securely share these data with their providers for asynchronous review, curation, and direct incorporation into the electronic health record (EHR). Graphical display of selected serial measures (e.g. weight, blood pressure, heart rate, and glucometer readings) permits both visual identification and monitoring of trends between visits. The corresponding ability to organize, curate, and import this information into the EHR in tabular form will also reduce associated transcription burdens and errors. In addition, free text annotations provide a vehicle for recording associated interval health questions and observations – and for recording special provider instructions during clinic visits.

Conclusion

MobileKidney is scheduled for field testing and launch by Kidney Week 2017. It will provide accessible education resources to Veterans with CKD and their providers, as well as a mobile digital platform for sharing detailed self-gathered interval health information for joint review at regularly scheduled clinic visits. Free text journaling capabilities also afford flexibility to tailor application use to specific clinical needs. This novel digital tool for interval healthcare data acquisition, delivery, and review also provides a structured replacement for traditional hardcopy health diaries and promises to enhance patient buy-in and engagement in self-monitoring activities, as well as improve patient-provider communication, documentation, and coordination of care.

Funding

  • Veterans Affairs Support