Mobile Companion App

Mobile Companion App

The companion application installed on the phone of the patient and on the phones of the support network members performs several functions essential to the product’s fulfillment of the original design brief. The app contains the necessary software to communicate between the Link wristband and the phone, while also utilizing the technologies within the phone to communicate with the patient’s doctor and support network. It became apparent during the design phase that both a screen and comprehensive input device was going to be required. However, including these features in the wristband itself was going to conflict with several of the design goals. Namely, adding a screen to the wristband would severely increase power consumption and reduce battery life. Even the most efficient smart-watch currently on the market 28 (the Pebble Time) only lasts approximately seven days on a full charge. To provide the desired service to the user, and to enable long-term, continual data collection it was important to meet or exceed this standard. Furthermore, including a system of comprehensive inputs in a watch-like form factor quickly becomes impractical, even using a touch interface, inputs would be small and difficult to use effectively. In this way smartphones provide both the screen space and the input method needed to solve both these issues.

What does the app do for patients?

For the patient the app performs several tasks.

It manages communications between the Link band and their doctor and support network. It can contact the doctor’s office if the user has recorded a survey indicating that they are in

a state of distress. Notifications can be displayed in more detail than is possible on the band. Enables them to send out messages and information to the whole network, or selected members of the group, based on the permission levels the patient determines is appropriate for that individual. It enables them to view the results of their surveys, both individually and graphed over time. They can request, book, schedule, confirm and be reminded of appointments with their doctor. Allows the user to customize some of the functions of the wristband such as: • Colour and brightness of the LEDs • The vibration level of notifications • Set wake and sleep times to silence notifications.

What does the app do for companions and other members of the support network?

While it’s already been established that there will be different levels of access for members of the support network, in general the app used by the support network will have the same general functions, but certain features or information about the patient will be restricted for some users. As such the app will:

Allow support network members to send a “how are you?” message to the patient’s wristband (described in detail later) and receive a response from the patient. Receive notifications about important events for the patient, such as upcoming appointments, surgeries, or progress milestones. Some members may even receive alerts when the patient records a particularly bad survey, or 29

series of surveys, indicating that the patient may be in need of additional support.

Setup and Options

When the patient receives their Link band they will be able to set up the device with their doctor. During this phase the patient and doctor will:

Enter the patient’s name and contact details Enter the doctor’s name and contact details They will select three factors which will be monitored by the survey function • i.e. pain, fatigue and anxiety Assign the patient with a unique ID number or signature which they can use to Link their device to members of their support network. Nominate a member of their support network as their “companion”. This person will receive more information from the Link band about the patient than the rest of the broader network.

Establish Companion Network

Setting up the network follows similar profiles of other social networking solutions. The app will access the patient’s contact list on their phone (or other contacts through other social media) and enable them to invite others to join their support network. Before sending out an invite the patient selects the tier of access they wish to grant the person. These can be selected from pre-set options, or customized for each individual. The text seen by the invitee will be customized to reflect the permission levels selected by the patient, outlining the type of access or notifications the invitee will receive should they choose to accept. Invites are sent through an SMS message or other private messaging software. They would contain a hyperlink and a unique code which has been assigned to the

patient’s account. Following the Link would take the invitee to a site or service where they would be able to download the companion app. Once downloaded, entering the code they were given in the invite would connect them to the patient’s support network. Once the user has joined the support network the patient receives a notification confirming their acceptance. Permission levels can be changed by the patient at any time, if they decide that they want to alter the amount of information that their Link device disperses to the support network, or alter the notifications they receive from the support network. Furthermore either the patient can remove members from the support network, or the individual users can withdraw their membership to the group.

Notification, Alerts and Reminders

Notifications that have been received will appear in a log within the app, indicating who they were from and the intended message. Notifications may contain links to websites or requests to call or message a particular party. In these scenarios the user will be able to tap on these options and automatically open the appropriate application within the phone.

Appointment Scheduling

For the patient the mobile app will:

Enable patients to request and schedule an appointment with their doctor

Remind patients about upcoming appointments

Automatically push out notifications to support network members with the appropriate permissions This last function is included because patients often experience anxiety when thinking about upcoming appointments, granting support network members the opportunity to respond appropriately. 31