Capitalizing on the Strengths of Persons With Rheumatoid Arthritis to Improve Health and Wellness
Phase: NA
Conditions: Chronic Disease, Rheumatic Diseases
Sponsor: Oslo University Hospital

Date: 2021-03-19 
 
 
Official title: Capitalizing on the Strengths of Persons With Rheumatoid Arthritis to Improve 
Health and Wellness   
Brief title: Feasibility of a Mobile Application to Support Reflection and Dialog About 
Strengths in People With Chronic Illness  
NCT03437863 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Date: 2021-03-19 
 
 
Study protocol and statistical analysis plan 
Self-management of chronic illness can be highly demanding and people need to mobilize 
their personal strengths in order to live well with their condition. A mobile application was 
designed in collaboration with people with chronic illness and health care providers with the 
aims to support awareness of patients' strengths and patient-provider dialogues that include 
strengths. The aim of the present study is to evaluate with mixed methods the perceived 
usefulness and usability of the application and potential effects of the application on patients.  
In this pre-post design pilot study participants will be recruited from self-management 
courses for people with rheumatic diseases. Before using the application participants will be 
asked to report their strengths in a written format. After using the mobile application to reflect 
on their strengths the participants will be interviewed about their experience of using the 
application and on the task of reflecting on their strengths. They will also be asked to fill out a 
questionnaire on perceived usefulness and user-friendliness. Before and after using the 
application the participants fill out questionnaires on emotions (Positive and Negative 
Affective Scale) and self-efficacy (The Arthritis Self-efficacy Scale). All interviews will be 
audio-taped and analyzed with a qualitative approach. Descriptive analysis will be applied for 
quantitative data. 
 
Note after study completion  
The reason for the registration of this non-clinical study in the register is the original plan to 
include a clinical sub-study with healthcare provider-patient pairs using the application in 
clinical practice. Due to practical issues no participants were recruited in the clinical part of 
the project. The non-clinical feasibility pilot study (n=12) is published without referral to the 
clinical registration number since it was not considered a clinical study. The reference is:  
Kristjansdottir, O. B., Børøsund, E., Westeng, M., Ruland, C., Stenberg, U., Zangi, H. A., ... & 
Mirkovic, J. (2020). Mobile App to Help People With Chronic Illness Reflect on Their Strengths: 
Formative Evaluation and Usability Testing. JMIR formative research, 4(3), e16831.