Mobile devices with an app that prompts providers to follow evidence-based guidelines showed improved rates of diagnosis for chronic health issues.
A study from the Columbia University School of Nursing in New York City found an app with decision support software significantly improved diagnosis rates for chronic conditions such as obesity, tobacco use and depression, according to a news release. During encounters with patients, the app prompted nurses to ask additional questions to aid in diagnosis. For example, to diagnose patients who were obese, the app calculated body mass index; to diagnose depression, the app prompted nurses to ask specific questions designed to make it easier to identify signs of depression.
Clinicians were seven times more likely to diagnose obesity, five times more likely to spot issues in tobacco use, 44 times more likely to identify depression in adults and four times more likely to identify pediatric depression, according to the news release.
"What clinicians need is decision support tools that fit into their workflow and remind them of evidence-based practices," said Suzanne Baken, RN, alumni professor of nursing and professor of biomedical informatics at Columbia Nursing, in the news release.