Tailoring Tofacitinib Oral Therapy in Rheumatoid Arthritis: The TuTORApp—A Usability Study

Savino Sciascia, Massimo Radin, Irene Cecchi, Pierluigi Di Nunzio, Nicola Buccarano, Federico Di Gregorio, Milone Valeria, Sara Osella, Paola Crosasso, Marika Denise Favuzzi, Elena Rubini, Silvia Grazietta Foddai, Simone Baldovino, Dario Roccatello and Daniela Rossi
Additional contact information
Savino Sciascia: Center of Research of Immunopathology and Rare Diseases-Coordinating Center of Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Network for Rare Diseases, and SCDU Nephrology and Dialysis-ERKnet Member, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, 10154 Turin, Italy
Massimo Radin: Center of Research of Immunopathology and Rare Diseases-Coordinating Center of Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Network for Rare Diseases, and SCDU Nephrology and Dialysis-ERKnet Member, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, 10154 Turin, Italy
Irene Cecchi: Center of Research of Immunopathology and Rare Diseases-Coordinating Center of Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Network for Rare Diseases, and SCDU Nephrology and Dialysis-ERKnet Member, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, 10154 Turin, Italy
Pierluigi Di Nunzio: DNDG Srl, 10151 Turin, Italy
Nicola Buccarano: DNDG Srl, 10151 Turin, Italy
Federico Di Gregorio: DNDG Srl, 10151 Turin, Italy
Milone Valeria: Pharmacy Department, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, 10154 Turin, Italy
Sara Osella: Pharmacy Department, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, 10154 Turin, Italy
Paola Crosasso: Pharmacy Department, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, 10154 Turin, Italy
Marika Denise Favuzzi: Center of Research of Immunopathology and Rare Diseases-Coordinating Center of Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Network for Rare Diseases, and SCDU Nephrology and Dialysis-ERKnet Member, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, 10154 Turin, Italy
Elena Rubini: Center of Research of Immunopathology and Rare Diseases-Coordinating Center of Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Network for Rare Diseases, and SCDU Nephrology and Dialysis-ERKnet Member, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, 10154 Turin, Italy
Silvia Grazietta Foddai: Center of Research of Immunopathology and Rare Diseases-Coordinating Center of Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Network for Rare Diseases, and SCDU Nephrology and Dialysis-ERKnet Member, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, 10154 Turin, Italy
Simone Baldovino: Center of Research of Immunopathology and Rare Diseases-Coordinating Center of Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Network for Rare Diseases, and SCDU Nephrology and Dialysis-ERKnet Member, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, 10154 Turin, Italy
Dario Roccatello: Center of Research of Immunopathology and Rare Diseases-Coordinating Center of Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Network for Rare Diseases, and SCDU Nephrology and Dialysis-ERKnet Member, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, 10154 Turin, Italy
Daniela Rossi: Center of Research of Immunopathology and Rare Diseases-Coordinating Center of Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Network for Rare Diseases, and SCDU Nephrology and Dialysis-ERKnet Member, S. Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences, 10154 Turin, Italy

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 10, 1-9

Abstract: Objective: To create a mobile application able to help patients follow medical treatments properly. Methods: We designed and developed a custom Android/iOS App to remind patients of the pharmaceutical drugs to be taken, of the visits and exams to attend, and to detect their compliance with their personal therapeutic plan. In this paper we describe the App development, UX/UI design, Gamification. TuTOR is an Android and iOS application designed to remind patients of the drugs to be taken, giving them all the information related to their therapeutic plans in a simple and non-invasive way. Thanks to a dedicated back-office, specially designed to meet specific medical information needs, the App can also help physicians detect their patients’ compliance with their treatments and modify prescriptions in real time. The App also ensures a state-of-the-art approach to data security and privacy protection. The main feature of TuTOR is the smart therapy assistant, which features dedicated alarms to remind users of taking their prescription drugs. Thanks to the automatic synchronization with a local database, the alert system works even without connection to the Internet. Particular attention was paid during the App’s design process: we looked to create an intuitive interface to ensure absolute ease of use, with state-of-the-art visual design aimed at maximizing user experience. Other relevant features include the App’s ability to givevisual evidence of the most important drugs to be taken and its note-taking feature, which gives patients the possibility to note down indications on why a specific drug was skipped. The App also keeps track of upcoming medical exams, laboratory tests, and visits on a devoted calendar. It also helps patients by listing therapy contacts, such as physicians’ phone numbers, and indicates all medical references by showing, for example, locations of relevant clinics and pharmacies on a map. Thanks to specific visual progress indicators and an innovative gamification approach, the App encourages users to faithfully follow therapy guidelines. With TuTOR, assessing the therapy’s state of completion is quick and easy.Thanksto the privacy-by-design approach used, all data managed by the system is compliant with the European Privacy Regulation and it is not available to third parties. Expected results: A mobile App for medication adherence might increase objectively and subjectively measured adherence.

Keywords: rheumatoid arthritis; mobile application; UX/UI design; gamification (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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