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The use of mobile devices has provided an opportunity to communicate with people around the world. This technology, combined with multiple mediums focused on individual convenience and interactions, has a positive effect on usability evaluation and to sustain in a competitive environment (Alghamdi et al., 2013; Wang and Liu, 2005). Mobile phones used in healthcare called mobile health (mHealth) allow digital technology or the Internet of things to boost the economy by reducing the gap in the medical divide. A number of research groups and governments are taking this opportunity to create a decentralized healthcare model for the people to control their chronic illnesses remotely using mHealth technologies and applications (apps), i.e., mobile care devices, telehealth services, and wellness tools (National Health Portal [NHP] of India, 2016; United Nations Foundation, 2015). Such applications and services not only help patients minimize waiting times and appointments, but also assist doctors in maintaining and obtaining medical records to better promote a patient-centered approach (Wangpipatwong et al., 2009; Sandhu, 2011; West, 2015; Qiang et al., 2011; Metelmann et al., 2014).
To achieve sustainable development goals for improving health, end poverty, and ensuring peace and prosperity, goal #3 has been set explicitly for improving health, i.e., “to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all age group” (Williams and Hunt, 2017). Due to the growing population and shortages of healthcare personnel, and infrastructure (Dhawan, 2015), one potential solution would be to use the mobile phone and their applications in the healthcare service. Such tools promote patient-centered activities that makes healthcare accessible and affordable to people.
For this reason, under the Digital India Program (Digital India - Power to Empower, 2020), the Government launched the National Health Portal (NHP) to improve health literacy, access to healthcare and reduce the burden of disease by providing health information to its rural and urban sectors. The portal includes mHealth applications and services for health management (NHP, 2016). Therefore, mHealth in India is “the use of transportation systems such as mobile medical units or vans and/or mobile phone/ICT for providing health services to the people living in a particular locality or self-care” (Pai and Alathur, 2019). While mobile phones and their applications are advantageous for managing healthcare, they are currently facing a downturn and have resulted in low acceptance (Prinja et al., 2016; Parthaje et al., 2016). This may be because of ambiguities in the definition, lack of awareness, training, resistance to change, and accessibility of mHealth (Pai and Alathur, 2019; Boruff and Storie, 2014; Ramachandran et al., 2010). Otherwise, the newness of the concept, working in the initial phase of the service delivery process, and needing a proper governance framework (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD], 2017; Pai and Alathur, 2019) would be a key barrier for not using them efficiently.