Hypertension Health Promotion via Text Messaging at a Community Health Center in South Africa: A Mixed Methods Study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The use of mobile phones to deliver health care (mHealth) is increasing in popularity due to the high prevalence of mobile phone penetration. This is seen in developing countries, where mHealth may be particularly useful in overcoming traditional access barriers. Non-communicable diseases may be particularly amenable to mHealth interventions, and hypertension is one with an escalating burden in the developing world.

Objective

The objective of this study was to test whether the dissemination of health information via a short message service (SMS) led to improvements in health knowledge and self-reported health-related behaviors.

Methods

A mixed methods study was carried out among a cohort of 223 hypertension clinic patients, in a resource-poor setting in Cap

SUBMITTER: Hacking D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4807246 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature