e-Health applications for outpatient professional pharmaceutical care services: A scoping review

Abstract

Background

eHealth, or electronic or digital health, integrates information and communication technologies (ICT) into healthcare, including professional pharmaceutical care services. Nevertheless, to date, there is a lack of guidance in establishing the technologies' requirements, design, and implementation. Therefore, it urges the need to conduct a study regarding this topic is needed.

Objectives

To identify and map information regarding the functionalities, contents, and structures of e-health applications designed for professional pharmaceutical care services in outpatient settings and to explore their effectiveness, usability, and user-friendliness.

Methods

A scoping systematic review was conducted on the PubMed/Medline and Scielo databases, following the PRISMAScR guidelines. The study covered articles published between May 2018 and December 2023. The main search terms were “pharmaceutical care, dispensation, adverse drug reaction, mobile phone, app.” Other related terms were also included.

Results

1469 articles were identified, of which different exclusion criteria excluded 1409. Sixty full-text articles were reviewed, of which six contained relevant information about the characteristics and functionalities of software designed to support pharmaceutical care activities, such as dispensation, pharmacovigilance, health education, and pharmacotherapeutic follow-up. In addition, one reference was identified in the selected articles, which was deemed relevant to the study. The characteristics and structures in mobile applications include medication information, identification of adverse drug reactions, pharmacist follow-up, indicators of safety and effectiveness, and interaction of patients with health care personnel, among others. In addition, two applications reported the effectiveness evaluation, whereas four showed results about usability tests.

Conclusions

This review retrieved six applications for outpatient professional pharmaceutical care services. Most of them are directed to the patients, and the most relevant functionalities were general information about medication and reminders, identification of interactions and adverse drug reactions, and adherence, among others. Two of six apps tested the effectivity, four tested usability, and three of six performed UCD, mainly using surveys. This review highlights the scarce information about implementing ICT in outpatient pharmaceutical care services.