Development of a training app for older adults with and without mild cognitive impairment

Background Exercise complying with physical activity recommendations have positive effects on health and well-being, regardless of age and pre-existing conditions such as mild cognitive impairment (MCI). However, a change in behaviour in terms of long-term adherence to exercise is hard to achieve. Mobile applications (apps) can be supportive if they enable individualized training, adaptation, documentation and goal setting. Therefore, the aim of this project was to develop a training app for elderly individuals with and without MCI and to evaluate its usability, usefulness and acceptance from the perspectives of older adults and physiotherapists.

Methods The HomeTrain app was developed using a participatory approach and an iterative design process. We integrated different perspectives to evaluate the app: a) participant observations during the first use of the app following a pre-defined protocol; b) survey using the system usability scale (SUS) and user experience questionnaire (UEQ), and pre-defined questions on the use of the app. We included older adults>65 years (yrs) with and without MCI, and physiotherapists recruited in geriatric institutions. Qualitative data was analysed using content analysis, quantitative data was analysed descriptively, e.g. mean (x̄).

Results The development phase was completed with successful functionality tests. We included 26 participants to evaluate the app. Five physiotherapists and elderly individuals completed participant observations. Twelve older adults, five with MCI (age: x̄=80 yrs), seven without MCI (age: x̄=72 yrs) and twelve physiotherapists (age: x̄=34 yrs) completed the survey. Participant observations identified usability problems. The SUS score for physiotherapists was x̄=73.5±18, for elderly individuals with MCI x̄=81.9±18 and without MCI x̄=88.5±11.5. The scores for the UEQ’s six dimensions ranged from x̄=1.2 to x̄=1.5 for physiotherapists, for elderly individuals with MCI from x̄=0.5 to x̄=2.3, and without MCI from x̄=0.7 to x̄=1.9.

Discussion/Conclusion HomeTrain's utility is demonstrated by its integrated functions and two interfaces, making it a simple and useful tool for physiotherapists, especially as digital devices become more prevalent in clinical care. However, the HomeTrain user interface was partially perceived as complex, suggesting simplification and further optimization for enhanced usability.

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Artikel online veröffentlicht:
23. Oktober 2025