Caminamos: A location-based Smartphone App for Latinas to Connect with Nearby Walking Partners

Health disparities are high among LatinasThey are more likely to be overweightdiagnosed with diabetesand physically inactive compared to their non Hispanic White counterpartsThusinterventions that target improving health access and ameliorating chronic diseases among Latinas are of high public health importanceAvailable data suggest that community focused interventions produce improvements in physical activityPAand are well received by Latinas especially when social and physical environments are considerede gsocial supportsafe walking areasetcResearch suggests that Latinos respond favorably to technological based health interventionsThushealth promotion interventions that can address Latinospreferences regarding their physical and social environments while utilizing a preferred technology sourcee gsmartphonecould prove highly successfulIn a Phase I SBIRour team developedCaminemos Juntas!an innovative mobile phone app using Location based ServicesLBSto connect women within geographically proximal neighborhoods as a way to provide social support for increased walking behaviorsSpecificallyweagathered feedback from an Expert Advisory BoardEABto help plan and assess the feasibility of creating the appbbuilt connections and gathered input from Latina community leaders to assist in the conceptual development of the app through a Community Advisory BoardCABcconducted an online survey of a national sample of Latinas on their smartphone usage for health promotionand interest in social networking and LBS technology featuresdconducted iterative focus groups with Latinas to guide development of app contentdesignand aesthetics to fully develop a functioning prototypeeconducted field usability testing with Latinas to test the app s accuracy to establish userslocation and connect users through theCaminemos Juntas! system and usersuse and satisfaction with the appandfdeveloped a specifications document to outline the Phase II development planThe results of the Phase I activities provided strong support for this Phase II SBIR applicationThe proposed Phase II project willdevelop a full scalefully programmedCaminemos Juntas! appdetermine whether theCaminemos Juntas! app can be translated and adapted to a new community environmenttest the performanceusageand usability of the full scalefullyprogrammed appandevaluate whetherCaminemos Juntas! increases physical activitysocial support for exerciseand quality of lifeQOLin LatinasCaminemos Juntas! will be evaluated in a randomized comparative effectiveness trialnwith Latinas agein the DenverCO and San JoseCA areasOverallthe proposed project has the potential to significantly impact Latinashealth by providing them with real time opportunities to connect socially with the goal of walkingCaminemos Juntas! will be the first app that use geo location technology dedicated to walking with a social emphasisfor any population Despite numerous interventions designed to increase physical activityfew are specifically tailored to Latinasa population where higher rates of obesitydiabetesand other chronic diseases are presentThis proposed smartphone appCaminemos Juntas!will use location based services to connect Latinas with one another in order to improve walking habits by increasing social support and decreasing perceived barriersboth of which are known to play a role in physical activity behaviorsThrough a randomized comparative effectiveness trialthis Phase II project will test the effectiveness of a smartphone application for improving physical activity among Latinas when providing them with real time opportunities to connect socially with the goal of walking