Measuring Health Outcomes Via An MHealth Text Message-Based Intervention In Low-Income, Spanish Speaking And English Speaking Participants In Rural Appalachia

Rural, low-income individuals see increased risk of chronic disease due to limited access to healthcare. Hispanic/Latino adults are affected disproportionately by these barriers. High Country Community Health (HCCH) and Appalachian State University (ASU) developed a bilingual (English and Spanish), 24-week, mHealth-based program called My Quest in the High Country (MQHC) to support these individuals. Participants received a FitBit. From weeks 1-12, participants received text messages (n=1-2/ day), self-monitoring prompt texts (n=1-2/wk), eNewsletters (n=1/wk) and weekly physical activity feedback. At mid-point, participants returned the Fitbit. Participants received texts and eNewsletters from weeks 13-24. Biometric data were collected and a survey completed at pre-, mid- and post-assessment. Analyses included McNemar, Wilcoxon Signed Rank, paired t-test, and descriptives. Significance was set at p<.05. Participants [n=19; English speaking (n=13), Spanish speaking (n=6) were female (95%), income less than $25,000/year (63%) and a mean age of 42.9 (11.9) years. MQHC resulted in significant weight loss and reduction in diastolic blood pressure in the whole group (n=18) and in the English speaking group (n=13). No changes were observed in the Spanish speaking group (n=6). Focus groups could determine how to meet the needs of the Hispanic/Latino population.