Currently submitted to: JMIR Formative Research
Date Submitted: Dec 9, 2025
Open Peer Review Period: Jan 7, 2026 - Mar 4, 2026
(currently open for review)
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
Measuring the Acceptance of Atrial Fibrillation Physicians of the AFib Mobile Application in the Egyptian Context
ABSTRACT
Background:
Mobile health (mHealth) applications hold significant potential for improving healthcare, yet their adoption in developing countries like Egypt remains low. While most research focuses on patient acceptance, physicians' adoption is crucial for success. This study investigates the factors influencing Egyptian physicians' acceptance of the AFib mHealth app for managing Atrial Fibrillation, a common and serious heart condition.
Objective:
The primary objective was to identify the key factors affecting Egyptian physicians' behavioral intention and actual use of the AFib mobile application, using the Extended Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) as a theoretical framework.
Methods:
A cross-sectional online survey was distributed via convenience sampling to 35 cardiologists in Alexandria, Egypt. The survey measured their perceptions based on four key variables: Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, Social Influence, and Trust, and their link to Behavioral Intention and Actual Use. Data were analyzed using SPSS to perform descriptive statistics and test five research hypotheses.
Results:
Descriptive results showed high scores for Perceived Ease of Use (4.07), Perceived Usefulness (4.04), and Behavioral Intention (4.11). Trust (3.44) and Social Influence (3.33) received more moderate scores. Hypothesis testing revealed that Perceived Usefulness and Trust were the only factors with a statistically significant positive effect on Behavioral Intention. Surprisingly, Perceived Ease of Use and Social Influence did not significantly influence intention. Finally, a strong, significant link was confirmed between Behavioral Intention and Actual Use.
Conclusions:
The study concludes that for Egyptian physicians, the decision to adopt the AFib app is driven primarily by its perceived clinical utility and their trust in its reliability and security, not merely its ease of use or peer influence. Therefore, to enhance mHealth adoption, developers and policymakers should focus on demonstrating tangible benefits to patient care and ensuring robust data security and accuracy. These findings provide a valuable guide for implementing mHealth solutions in Egypt and similar developing contexts.
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