Explorando o conhecimento sobre aplicações digitais de saúde e estilo de vida: um estudo observacional transversal numa farmácia comunitária
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2023
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A área da saúde está em constante desenvolvimento, tendo como objetivo principal a melhoria da qualidade de vida dos cidadãos, dando assistência rápida, para o que a tecnologia tem vindo a contribuir para esse feito. Existem cada vez mais aplicações para os smartphones e smartwatches que ajudam cada indivíduo a cuidar da sua saúde e do seu estilo de vida, permitindo um contacto mais próximo entre os utentes/cuidadores e os profissionais de saúde, o que é fundamental para serem bem acompanhados, nomeadamente, utentes com doenças crónicas. Neste contexto, realizámos um estudo observacional transversal. O mesmo foi feito numa farmácia comunitária, Farmácia Silveira do Alegro Sintra, em que foi realizado um inquérito aos utentes com o intuito de perceber que conhecimento é que a população tem sobre as aplicações digitais relacionadas com a saúde e estilo de vida, bem como se as utiliza no seu dia a dia e se confia nas informações fornecidas pelas mesmas. O questionário envolvia também questões sobre a comunicação feita através de meios tecnológicos e redes sociais entre a população e os profissionais de saúde, bem como se existiram alterações após a COVID-19, em que a maioria sentiu que houve um aumento após a pandemia. A maioria (85 % e 62,5 %, respetivamente) da população inquerida disse conhecer aplicações que ajudam a controlar a sua própria saúde e a ter um estilo de vida mais saudável, no entanto apenas 20 % desconhece aplicações relacionadas com a adesão à medicação. Apenas 14 dos 40 inqueridos utilizam estas aplicações no seu dia a dia e 42,9 % dos que utilizam estas aplicações acredita na informação que recebe por parte das aplicações e sente-se confortável em partilhá-la com todos os profissionais de saúde. Os 14 dos 40 inqueridos sentem que as aplicações digitais podem ser relevantes para certas patologias, tais como: hipertensão, diabetes, obesidade, colesterolemia e saúde mental, bem como para ajudar no estilo de vida e na adesão à terapêutica.
No geral, este estudo demonstrou que a tecnologia tem tido um papel fundamental na saúde, ajudando a melhorar a qualidade de vida dos utentes. No entanto, ainda existem pormenores a melhorar no futuro. Para estudos futuros recomenda-se que se realize um estudo semelhante em diferentes localidades e até mesmo um só direcionado a pessoas diabéticas.
Palavras-chave: Aplicações, empoderamento do utente, saúde digital, saúde móvel, telessaúde
The healthcare area is constantly developing, with the main goal of improving the quality of life of users and providing faster assistance, with technology development contributing significantly to this achievement. There are increasingly more applications for smartphones and smartwatches that help each individual take care of their own health, their lifestyle, and allow closer contact between users/caregivers and healthcare professionals, which is fundamental for proper monitoring, namely for users with chronic diseases. In this context, we conducted a cross-sectional observational study. The same was done at a community pharmacy, Farmácia Silveira do Alegro Sintra, where a survey was carried out among users, with the aim of understanding what knowledge the population has about digital applications related to health and lifestyle, as well as whether they use them on a daily basis and trust the information provided by them. The questionnaire also involved questions about communication made through technological means and social networks between the population and healthcare professionals, as well as whether there were changes after COVID-19, in which the majority felt that there was an increase after the pandemic. The majority (85 % and 62,9 % respectively) of the surveyed population said they knew about applications that enables to control their health and lead to a healthier lifestyle, however, only 20 % are unaware of applications related to adherence to medication. Only 14 of the 40 respondents use life-style applications in their daily lives, and 42,9 % of those using these applications believe in the information they receive from the applications and feel comfortable sharing it with all healthcare professionals. Respondents feel that digital applications can be relevant to certain pathologies, such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity, cholesterol and mental heath, as well as to help with lifestyle and adherence to treatment. Overall, this study showed that technology may play a fundamental role in healthcare, helping to improve the quality of life of patients. However, there are still details to improve in the future. For future studies, it is recommended to conduct a similar study in different locations and even one specifically targeted at diabetic individuals. Key-words: Applications, user empowerment, digital health, mobile health, telehealth
The healthcare area is constantly developing, with the main goal of improving the quality of life of users and providing faster assistance, with technology development contributing significantly to this achievement. There are increasingly more applications for smartphones and smartwatches that help each individual take care of their own health, their lifestyle, and allow closer contact between users/caregivers and healthcare professionals, which is fundamental for proper monitoring, namely for users with chronic diseases. In this context, we conducted a cross-sectional observational study. The same was done at a community pharmacy, Farmácia Silveira do Alegro Sintra, where a survey was carried out among users, with the aim of understanding what knowledge the population has about digital applications related to health and lifestyle, as well as whether they use them on a daily basis and trust the information provided by them. The questionnaire also involved questions about communication made through technological means and social networks between the population and healthcare professionals, as well as whether there were changes after COVID-19, in which the majority felt that there was an increase after the pandemic. The majority (85 % and 62,9 % respectively) of the surveyed population said they knew about applications that enables to control their health and lead to a healthier lifestyle, however, only 20 % are unaware of applications related to adherence to medication. Only 14 of the 40 respondents use life-style applications in their daily lives, and 42,9 % of those using these applications believe in the information they receive from the applications and feel comfortable sharing it with all healthcare professionals. Respondents feel that digital applications can be relevant to certain pathologies, such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity, cholesterol and mental heath, as well as to help with lifestyle and adherence to treatment. Overall, this study showed that technology may play a fundamental role in healthcare, helping to improve the quality of life of patients. However, there are still details to improve in the future. For future studies, it is recommended to conduct a similar study in different locations and even one specifically targeted at diabetic individuals. Key-words: Applications, user empowerment, digital health, mobile health, telehealth
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Orientação: João Pedro Gregório
Palavras-chave
MESTRADO INTEGRADO EM CIÊNCIAS FARMACÊUTICAS, CIÊNCIAS FARMACÊUTICAS, PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES, SOFTWARE DE APLICAÇÕES, APPLICATION SOFTWARE, TECNOLOGIAS MÓVEIS, MOBILE TECHNOLOGY, TELEMEDICINA, TELEMEDICINE