An avatar-based education application to improve patients’ knowledge of and response to heart attack symptoms: A pragmatic randomized controlled trial protocol

Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of an interactive, avatar-based education application to improve knowledge of and response to heart attack symptoms in people who are at risk of a heart attack. Background: Poor knowledge of heart attack symptoms is recognized as a significant barrier to timely medical treatment. Numerous studies have demonstrated that technology can assist in patient education to improve knowledge and self-care. Design: A single-center, non-blinded, two parallel groups, pragmatic randomized controlled trial. Methods: Seventy patients will be recruited from the coronary care unit of a public hospital. Eligible participants will be randomized to either the usual care or the intervention group (usual care plus avatar-based heart attack education app). The primary outcome of this study is knowledge. Secondary outcomes include response to heart attack symptoms, health service use and satisfaction. Study participants will be followed up for 6 months. Discussion: This study will evaluate the avatar-based education app as a method to deliver vital information to patients. Participants’ knowledge of and response to heart attack symptoms, and their health service use, will be assessed to evaluate the intervention effectiveness.