The Effectiveness of a Mobile Health Care App and Human Coaching Program in Primary Care Clinics: Pilot Multicenter Real-World Study

BACKGROUND: As the global burden of chronic conditions increases, their effective management is a concern. Although the need for chronic disease management using mobile self-management health care apps is increasing, there are still many barriers to their practical application in the primary care field. OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated the effectiveness of primary care services combining a mobile self-management health care app with human coaching for patients with chronic diseases in the current primary care system. METHODS: A total of 110 patients (mean age 53.2, SD 9.2 years; 64 of 110, 58.2% female) with hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia, or metabolic syndrome who visited one of 17 participating primary care clinics from September to November 2020 were included in this study. All participants recorded data regarding changes in body weight, sleep conditions, quality of life, depression, anxiety, stress, BMI, waist circumference, blood sugar levels, blood pressure, and blood lipids levels. The app user group (n=65) used a mobile self-management health care app with human coaching for 12 weeks, and the control group (n=45) underwent conventional self-managed health care. RESULTS: Patients in the app user group reported significantly more weight loss than those in the control group—the body weight of the app user group decreased by 1.43 kg (95% CI –2.07 to –0.79) and that of the control group decreased by 0.13 kg (95% CI –0.67 to 0.41; P=.002). The weight loss was markedly greater after using the app for 9 weeks than that when used for 4 weeks or 5-8 weeks (P=.002). Patients in the app user group reported better sleep quality (P=.04) and duration (P=.004) than those in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of primary care clinics and a mobile self-management health care app with human coaching results in better management of chronic conditions. This study shows that the primary care services combining a mobile self-management health care app with human coaching are effective in the current primary care system. An implication of this study is the possibility that a mobile self-management health care app with human coaching is a treatment option in the current primary care system.