Using Intervention Mapping to Develop a Decision Support System-Based Smartphone App (selfBACK) to Support Self-management of Nonspecific Low Back Pain: Development and Usability Study

• Hoofdauteurs: Malene Jagd Svendsen (Auteur), Louise Fleng Sandal (Auteur), Per Kjær (Auteur), Barbara I Nicholl (Auteur), Kay Cooper (Auteur), Frances Mair (Auteur), Jan Hartvigsen (Auteur), Mette Jensen Stochkendahl (Auteur), Karen Søgaard (Auteur), Paul Jarle Mork (Auteur), Charlotte Rasmussen (Auteur)
• Formaat: Boek
• Gepubliceerd in: JMIR Publications, 2022-01-01T00:00:00Z.
• Onderwerpen: article
• Online toegang: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 1438-8871; 10.2196/26555
• Keywords: Computer applications to medicine. Medical informatics; R858-859.7; Public aspects of medicine; RA1-1270
• Source: Journal of Medical Internet Research, Vol 24, Iss 1, p e26555 (2022)

BackgroundInternational guidelines consistently endorse the promotion of self-management for people with low back pain (LBP); however, implementation of these guidelines remains a challenge. Digital health interventions, such as those that can be provided by smartphone apps, have been proposed as a promising mode of supporting self-management in people with chronic conditions, including LBP. However, the evidence base for digital health interventions to support self-management of LBP is weak, and detailed descriptions and documentation of the interventions are lacking. Structured intervention mapping (IM) constitutes a 6-step process that can be used to guide the development of complex interventions. ObjectiveThe aim of this paper is to describe the IM process for designing and creating an app-based intervention designed to support self-management of nonspecific LBP to reduce pain-related disability. MethodsThe first 5 steps of the IM process were systematically applied. The core processes included literature reviews, brainstorming and group discussions, and the inclusion of stakeholders and representatives from the target population. Over a period of >2 years, the intervention content and the technical features of delivery were created, tested, and revised through user tests, feasibility studies, and a pilot study. ResultsA behavioral outcome was identified as a proxy for reaching the overall program goal, that is, increased use of evidence-based self-management strategies. Physical exercises, education, and physical activity were the main components of the self-management intervention and were designed and produced to be delivered via a smartphone app. All intervention content was theoretically underpinned by the behavior change theory and the normalization process theory. ConclusionsWe describe a detailed example of the application of the IM approach for the development of a theory-driven, complex, and digital intervention designed to support self-management of LBP. This description provides transparency in the developmental process of the intervention and can be a possible blueprint for designing and creating future digital health interventions for self-management.