Megan Rollo*, School Of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medicine, Priority Research Centre in Physical Activity and Nutrition, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, Australia Andrew Harvey, Discover Info (NSW), Kempsey, Australia Melinda Hutchesson, School Of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medicine, Priority Research Centre in Physical Activity and Nutrition, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, Australia Pennie Jones, SP Health Co, North Sydney, Australia Anna Crook, SP Health Co, Santa Monica, United States Geoff Skinner, School of Design, Communication and Information Technology, Faculty of Science and Information Technology, Priority Research Centre for Physical Activity and Nutritio, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, Australia Clare Collins*, School Of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medicine, Priority Research Centre in Physical Activity and Nutrition, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, Australia Track: Research Presentation Topic: Web 2.0 approaches for behaviour change, public health and biosurveillance Presentation Type: Poster presentation Submission Type: Single Presentation Last modified: 2014-06-09

If you are the presenter of this abstract (or if you cite this abstract in a talk or on a poster), please show the QR code in your slide or poster (QR code contains this URL).

Background: Web-based weight loss programs have been effective in the management of obesity. Some programs also use telephone or in-person counselling to supplement website content and features. Video calls have been used extensively in healthcare, however to-date no web-based weight loss programs have embedded this feature. Compared to existing third-party software which requires all users to install to enable communication, web real-time communication (web-RTC) platforms allow the video call portal to be built within an existing website. This feature has the potential to enhance the user experience and may improve access to one-on-one support from health professionals for web-based program users.
Objective: To describe the development process used to build a virtual clinic (VC) web-RTC prototype within a web-based weight loss program, ClickFit®, for real-time video calls with a dietitian.
Methods: Existing telehealth guidelines were reviewed and areas related to technical, administrative and clinical components identified. A team of experienced dietitians and programmers identified important features for each component of the VC prototype. Attention was placed on developing a virtual experience that replicated an in-person interaction (e.g. clear visual and auditory communication, secure and private consultation space, administration of appointments), with VC features integrated with existing ClickFit® user data management and security features. The prototype was developed following an agile process with the OpenTok application programming interface web-RTC protocol used for the delivery of video calls.
Results: The primary objective of a web-RTC portal within the ClickFit® website was achieved, with the developed VC prototype providing a secure, high quality video stream for dietitian-client consultations. Within ClickFit®, the VC is divided into two distinct areas for the client and the dietitian. A client views their own video stream as a smaller image, and the dietitian stream as full webpage width. The dietitian sees the reverse page layout and only they can initiate the video connection. In addition, the client’s clinical information (e.g. weight, dietary intake) appears as a dashboard to the dietitian during the video call and their notes on the consultation linked to client’s profile. Other VC components identified in the design process such as providing full control of video calls, facilitating appointment scheduling, and restricting ad-hoc calls were also built into the prototype. Additional functions relating to screen-sharing and displaying client data from external devices within the health professional dashboard were not included in the current prototype due to the need for resources outside the scope of the project.
Conclusions: Obesity management guidelines recommend frequent (i.e. fortnightly to monthly) professional support to assist with weight loss and/or maintenance. However this level of follow-up frequency is difficult to achieve due to inherent restrictions within existing health care models. The addition of a video call portal to web-based programs provides an opportunity for regular, streamlined access to real-time, face-to-face expert advice from a healthcare professional. An evaluation of the feasibility of combining ClickFit® with dietetic support using the VC prototype is being undertaken in overweight/obese adults.