ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Evaluate nurses' and other health care professionals' (HCPs) perceptions about implementing mobile health technology (mHealth) in clinical practice to support health care delivery for low-resourced, safety-net communities. DESIGN: Qualitative exploratory study using data collected from focus group sessions. Respondents addressed four topics: (1) technology's role in health care delivery; (2) barriers to incorporating mHealth data in clinical practice; (3) need for mHealth Clinical Practice Guide (CPG); and (4) mHealth's potential to improve health care access for marginalized communities. SAMPLE: Thirty HCPs providing services to community health center patients in Washington State and Washington, DC. MEASUREMENTS: Thematic analysis of qualitative data. RESULTS: Themes included:(1) mHealth's ability to provide customized reminders and data accuracy; (2) patients' mistrust of technology; (3) the possibility of linking community resources to address the social determinants of health;(4) mHealth's potential to improve patient-provider communication. CONCLUSION: Health care professionals support incorporating mHealth inpatient care but suggest that an mHealth CPG would improve its potential for facilitating health care delivery in low-resourced communities.
