Dec 2011: NIH Mobile Health (mHealth) Winter Institute

5-9 December 2011, Participation at mHealth Training Institute organized by the US National Institute of Health (NIH) and co-located with the mHealth Summit at Washington DC, USA.

Using mobile technologies to more rapidly and accurately assess and modify behavior, biological states and contextual variables has great potential to transform medical research. Recent advances in mobile technologies and the ubiquitous nature of these technologies in daily life (e.g., smart phones, sensors) have created opportunities for research applications that were not previously possible (e.g., simultaneously assessing behavioral, physiological, and psychological states in the real world and in real-time). The use of mobile technology affords numerous methodological advantages over traditional methods, including reduced memory bias, the ability to capture time-intensive longitudinal data, date- and time-stamped data, and the potential for personalizing information in real-time. However, challenges in mobile health (or mHealth) research exist. Importantly, much of the work being done in mHealth arises from single disciplines without integration of the behavioral, social sciences and clinical research fields. Without integration, mobile technologies will not be maximally effective. The NIH mHealth Winter institute address the scientific silos by bring together scientists from diverse fields to enhance the quality of mHealth research.

QoL will be represented by Katarzyna Wac who has been accepted for participation and additionally received NIH partial travel grant.