Health Maintenance Organization–mHealth Versus Face-to-Face Interaction for Health Care in Israel: Cross-Sectional Web-Based Survey Study (Preprint)
Authors: Zigdon Avi , Zwilling Moti , Zigdon Ofek , Reges Orna 
Published: December 2023

BACKGROUND

Health maintenance organization–mobile health (HMO-mHealth) services have a direct impact on patients’ daily lives, and HMOs regularly expand their range of mHealth services. HMO-mHealth apps are saving HMOs time and money, as services are becoming more accessible to patients. However, the willingness to use mHealth apps depends on user perception. Although mHealth apps can change the relationship dynamic between HMOs and patients, patients prefer to use them to facilitate face-to-face interactions rather than replace them.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to examine the extent to which Israeli adults prefer adopting health care services using HMO-mHealth as a replacement for face-to-face interaction.

METHODS

Israeli adults aged ≥18 years completed an electronic questionnaire. Data were collected from December 2020 to February 2021. All services in the main HMO-mHealth apps of the 4 Israeli HMOs were mapped. The 29 health care services used in this study were identical in all 4 HMO-mHealth apps in Israel. The association between sociodemographic characteristics and health condition with preference for HMO-mHealth or face-to-face interaction was analyzed separately for each health service by using a logistic model.

RESULTS

A total of 6321 respondents completed the questionnaire (female: 4296/6321, 68%; male: 2025/6321, 32%). Approximately 80.9% (5115/6321) to 88.2% (5578/6321) of the respondents preferred using HMO-mHealth apps for administrative matters. However, 55.3% (3498/6321), 52.2% (3301/6321), and 46.9% (2969/6321) preferred face-to-face meetings for the initial medical diagnosis, medical treatment, and medical diagnosis results, respectively. Seven main variables were found to be associated with HMO-mHealth adoption, including gender, age, education, marital status, religious affiliation, and subjective health condition. Female respondents were more likely than male respondents to prefer HMO-mHealth apps for administrative matters and face-to-face interaction for personal medical diagnosis and treatment (odds ratio [OR] 0.74, 95% CI 0.67-0.83; <i>P</i><.001 and OR 0.82, 95% CI 0.74-0.92; <i>P</i><.001, respectively). Married individuals preferred using HMO-mHealth apps over face-to-face meetings for a new medical diagnosis (OR 1.31, 95% CI 1.15-1.49; <i>P</i><.001) or treatment (OR 1.34, 95% CI 1.18-1.52; <i>P</i><.001). Improved health perception was associated with higher preference for HMO-mHealth apps across all health care services in this study (OR 1.11, 95% CI 1.02-1.22; <i>P</i><.02 to OR 1.38, 95% CI 1.25-1.53; <i>P</i><.001). No significant association was found between the presence of a chronic disease and the preferred mode of interaction for most services.

CONCLUSIONS

HMO-mHealth is proving to be a robust and efficient tool for health care service delivery. However, there are barriers that affect vulnerable populations when adopting HMO-mHealth. Therefore, it is important to tailor HMO-mHealth apps for older adults, the chronically ill, and minorities in society, as these groups have a greater need for these services. Future studies should focus on identifying the barriers that affect the utilization of HMO-mHealth in these groups.