Implementing text-messaging to support and enhance delivery of health behavior change interventions in low- to middle-income countries
Case study of the Lifestyle Africa intervention
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 15375481 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Frank T Materia (0000-0002-8015-1743, Children's Mercy Hospital, corresponding author), Joshua M Smyth (0000-0002-0904-5390, Pennsylvania State University), Thandi Puoane (0000-0001-8871-9260, University of the Western Cape), Lungiswa Tsolekile (0000-0001-8597-141X, University of the Western Cape), Kathy Goggin (0000-0002-8679-9911, Children's Mercy Hospital), Stephen R Kodish (0000-0003-0929-3252, Pennsylvania State University), Andrew T Fox (0000-0002-5603-2939, Children's Mercy Hospital), K Resnicow (0000-0003-1416-9627, University of Michigan), Scott Werntz (0000-0002-3189-7952, Lincolnshire County Council), Delwyn Catley (0000-0002-7270-8732, Children's Mercy Hospital) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 23 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 1526-1526 |
| Publication date | 2023-08-10 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | BMC Public Health (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1471-2458 • E-ISSN: 1471-2458 |
| Publisher | BioMed Central (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1186/s12889-023-16388-y |
| PMID | 37563595 |
| OpenAlex | W4385737771 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 25 |
The prevalence of non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, is rising in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Health behavior change (HBC) interventions such as the widely used Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) are effective at reducing chronic disease risk, but have not been adapted for LMICs. Leveraging mobile health (mHealth) technology such as text messaging (SMS) to enhance reach and participant engagement with these interventions has great promise, yet we lack evidence-informed approaches to guide the integration of SMS specifically to support HBC interventions in LMIC contexts. To address this gap, we integrated guidance from the mHealth literature with expertise and first-hand experience to establish specific development steps for building and implementing SMS systems to support HBC programming in LMICs. Specifically, we provide real-world examples of each development step by describing our experience in designing and delivering an SMS system to support a culturally-adapted DPP designed for delivery in South Africa. We outline eight key SMS development steps, including: 1) determining if SMS is appropriate; 2) developing system architecture and programming; 3) developing theory-based messages; 4) developing SMS technology; 5) addressing international SMS delivery; 6) testing; 7) system training and technical support; and 8) cost considerations. We discuss lessons learned and extractable principles that may be of use to other mHealth and HBC researchers working in similar LMIC contexts.Trial registration Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT03342274 . Registered 10 November 2017
Behavior change · Developing country · Economic growth · Intervention (counseling · mHealth · Psychological intervention · Public health · Short Message Service · Computer Science · Digital Mental Health Interventions · ICT in Developing Communities · Medicine · Mobile Health and mHealth Applications · Nursing
Tailored and Targeted Health Communication
Theoretical explanations for maintenance of behaviour change
Text Messaging as a Tool for Behavior Change in Disease Prevention and Management
The theory of planned behavior
The Health Belief Model and Preventive Health Behavior
Advancing Tailored Health Communication
Best practices in scaling digital health in low and middle income countries
The Technology Acceptance Model for Resource-Limited Settings (TAM-RLS)
Does tailoring matter? Meta-analytic review of tailored print health behavior change interventions
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 3 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2026 (2) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |