School of Medicine, Walailak University, Thasala, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand.
Walailak University Hospital, Thasala, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand.
BMC Med Inform Decis Mak. 2020 Jan 6;20(1):5. doi: 10.1186/s12911-019-1016-4.
Mobile health applications (mHealth apps) are increasingly being used to perform tasks that are conventionally performed by general practitioners (GPs), such as those involved in promoting health, preventing disease, diagnosis, treatment, monitoring, and support for health services. This raises an important question: can mobile apps replace GPs? This study aimed to systematically search for and identify mobile apps that can perform GP tasks.
A scoping review was carried out. The Google Play Store and Apple App Store were searched for mobile apps, using search terms derived from the UK Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) guideline on GPs' core capabilities and competencies. A manual search was also performed to identify additional apps.
The final analysis included 17 apps from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store, and 21 apps identified by the manual search. mHealth apps were found to have the potential to replace GPs for tasks such as recording medical history and making diagnoses; performing some physical examinations; supporting clinical decision making and management; assisting in urgent, long-term, and disease-specific care; and health promotion. In contrast, mHealth apps were unable to perform medical procedures, appropriately utilise other professionals, and coordinate a team-based approach.
This scoping review highlights the functions of mHealth apps that can potentially replace GP tasks. Future research should focus on assessing the performance and quality of mHealth apps in comparison with that of real doctors.
移动医疗应用程序（mHealth 应用程序）越来越多地被用于执行传统上由全科医生（GP）执行的任务，例如促进健康、预防疾病、诊断、治疗、监测和支持医疗服务等任务。这就提出了一个重要的问题：移动应用程序可以替代全科医生吗？本研究旨在系统地搜索和识别可以执行 GP 任务的移动应用程序。
进行了范围界定审查。使用源自英国皇家全科医师学院（RCGP）关于全科医生核心能力和技能指南的术语，在 Google Play 商店和 Apple App Store 中搜索移动应用程序。还进行了手动搜索以识别其他应用程序。
最终分析包括来自 Google Play 商店和 Apple App Store 的 17 个应用程序，以及通过手动搜索确定的 21 个应用程序。发现 mHealth 应用程序有可能替代全科医生执行某些任务，例如记录病史和做出诊断；进行一些体检；支持临床决策和管理；协助紧急、长期和特定疾病的护理；以及促进健康。相比之下，mHealth 应用程序无法进行医疗程序，无法适当利用其他专业人员，也无法协调基于团队的方法。
本范围界定审查强调了 mHealth 应用程序可以潜在替代 GP 任务的功能。未来的研究应侧重于评估 mHealth 应用程序的性能和质量，并将其与真正的医生进行比较。
