Informational Requirements of A Mobile-Based System to Manage the Treatment of Stimulant Abusers

Background and Aim: Substance abuse as a physical and mental disease has threatened the lives of not only abusers but also community members. Stimulants, in particular, are among the most dangerous substances because of their physical and psychological side effects. The process of treating stimulant abusers is so complicated that makes the treatment very difficult. The aim of the current study is to identify the bits of information needed for the design and development of a mobile application system and a web-based application program to improve the treatment management of stimulant abusers. Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional study in which the population and the sample are the same. All participants in this study work at Iranian National Center for Addiction Studies (INCAS) as stimulant abuse caregivers. The data collection tool was a questionnaire made by the researchers based on the Likert scale and the data were analyzed with SPSS. Results: Items that got more than 50% of the participants’ acceptance were identified as the information needed for the system. The most influential items were education and motivational messages with 100% of experts’ agreement. Trauma history and medication therapy, however, got less than 50% and were removed. Other items were put into the study by gaining an average of more than 80% of the experts’ agreement.  Conclusion: Emerging technologies in the field of heath can play a significant role in the optimization of stimulant abuse treatment by facilitating the treatment process, increasing the patient participation in the process of treatment, and reducing the costs of patients’ lapse and relapse.