Healthcare Mobile Applications: Success and Failure Factors

Background: Today, mobile health applications have become an integral component in the healthcare setting. It is estimated that 500 million smart phone user all over the world will be using a health care app by 2015 and by 2018, more than 1.7 billion user will have installed mobile health apps on their smart phones and tablets. Thus, factors of success and failure of this application must be studied to improve the mobile healthcare. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the success and failure factors of mobile health applications. Materials/Patients and Methods: This review study conducted by electronic search of related articles since 2013 to 2016 in PubMed, Scopus and Science Direct using keywords of mobile health applications success and failure factors. Results: Pay attention to the aim, user, location, regulations and content, platform, idea, marketing and support of application are success factors was noted in previous studies. Also, not solving the problem, lack of teamwork, poor security, high price, Lack of clinician involvement, poor attention to usability, not building to regulatory specification, not knowing the healthcare landscape are success factors was noted in previous studies. Conclusion: Designers and mobile health application developers, should consider the success and failure factors these apps. Identifying and considering the success and failure factors of mobile health applications can improve the quality of health care provided by them.