Highlights
- •Color Me Healthy is a child-centric, game-based symptom assessment app.
- •Children with cancer reported symptoms and daily experiences using the app.
- •Children’s self-reported data can support a person-centered approach to care.
- •Research is needed to evaluate the efficacy of mHealth apps to improve symptoms.
Abstract
Purpose
Mobile health (mHealth) resources, including apps, are emerging as resources to support
children in tracking symptoms and other health-related data. The purpose of this study
was to describe symptoms and daily experiences reported by elementary school-age children
receiving treatment for cancer using the newly developed Color Me Healthy app.
Design and methods
Participants in this descriptive study were children 6–12 years of age, who were receiving
cancer treatment at a free-standing children’s hospital in the Intermountain West
of the United States. Children were requested to use the app for at least five days
between clinical visits. Children’s app-reported data were extracted from individual
user accounts for analysis. Quantitative data were summarized descriptively. Qualitative
data were summarized using qualitative content analysis.
Results
Nineteen children (6–12 years; median 8 years; 7 females) completed 107 days of app
use. All children reported symptoms at least once, and 14 reported at least one day
with a symptom of moderate or greater severity. Daily experiences reported through
the app reflected children’s engagement in usual childhood experiences while also
describing life with cancer, including symptoms.
Conclusions
Elementary school-age children are capable of self-reporting symptoms using a symptom
reporting app, providing preliminary evidence for the potential benefits and clinical
relevance of mHealth resources to support health outcomes within this population.
Practice implications
Clinicians should anticipate and support ongoing symptom management needs between
clinical visits. Children’s self-reported data can promote a person-centered approach
to symptom assessment and management.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: April 28, 2022
Accepted:
April 17,
2022
Received in revised form:
March 18,
2022
Received:
October 5,
2021
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
