ArticleBMC medical informatics and decision making2020
Can mobile health apps replace GPs? A scoping review of comparisons between mobile apps and GP tasks.
Article in BMC medical informatics and decision making, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 25 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
25 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Rewiring care delivery through Digital Therapeutics (DTx): a machine learning-enhanced assessment and development (M-LEAD) framework.BMC health services research · 2024Pooled it
- Dissemination Strategies for mHealth Apps: Systematic Review.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2024Pooled it
- Towards Understanding the Usability Attributes of AI-Enabled eHealth Mobile Applications.Journal of healthcare engineering · 2021Pooled it
- Mobile App Rating Scale for Health Care Professionals to Assess the Quality of mHealth Apps: Questionnaire Development and Psychometric Analysis.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2026Article
- The Longevity of Mobile Apps for Cancer Recovery: Scoping Review.JMIR cancer · 2026Article
- From awareness to integration: a qualitative interview study on the impact of digital therapeutics on physicians' practices in Germany.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- Article
- Accuracy of Artificial Intelligence Based Chatbots in Analyzing Orthopedic Pathologies: An Experimental Multi-Observer Analysis.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Concordance of data collected by an app for medical history taking and in-person interviews from patients in primary care.JAMIA open · 2024Article
- The Doctors, Their Patients, and the Symptom Checker App: Qualitative Interview Study With General Practitioners in Germany.JMIR human factors · 2024Article
- Health Maintenance Organization-mHealth Versus Face-to-Face Interaction for Health Care in Israel: Cross-Sectional Web-Based Survey Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Article
- Comparative Evaluation of Digital Cephalometric Tracing Applications on Mobile Devices and Manual Tracing.Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research · 2024Article
- Does an App a Day Keep the Doctor Away? AI Symptom Checker Applications, Entrenched Bias, and Professional Responsibility.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Article
- Impacts of Symptom Checkers for Laypersons' Self-diagnosis on Physicians in Primary Care: Scoping Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Article
- Barriers to and Facilitators of the Use of Digital Tools in Primary Care to Deliver Physical Activity Advice: Semistructured Interviews and Thematic Analysis.JMIR human factors · 2022Article
- Marketing research on Mobile apps: past, present and future.Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science · 2022Review
- Towards eHealth to support the health journey of headache patients: a scoping review.Journal of neurology · 2021Article
- Application of Smartphone Technologies in Disease Monitoring: A Systematic Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Review
- Article
- Challenges of Implementing an mHealth Application for Personalized Physical Activity Counselling in Primary Health Care: A Qualitative Study.International journal of general medicine · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMobile health applications (mHealth apps) are increasingly being used to perform tasks that are conventionally performed by general practitioners (GPs), such as those involved in promoting health, preventing disease, diagnosis, treatment, monitoring, and support for health services. This raises an important question: can mobile apps replace GPs? This study aimed to systematically search for and identify mobile apps that can perform GP tasks.
methodsA scoping review was carried out. The Google Play Store and Apple App Store were searched for mobile apps, using search terms derived from the UK Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) guideline on GPs' core capabilities and competencies. A manual search was also performed to identify additional apps.
resultsThe final analysis included 17 apps from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store, and 21 apps identified by the manual search. mHealth apps were found to have the potential to replace GPs for tasks such as recording medical history and making diagnoses; performing some physical examinations; supporting clinical decision making and management; assisting in urgent, long-term, and disease-specific care; and health promotion. In contrast, mHealth apps were unable to perform medical procedures, appropriately utilise other professionals, and coordinate a team-based approach.
conclusionsThis scoping review highlights the functions of mHealth apps that can potentially replace GP tasks. Future research should focus on assessing the performance and quality of mHealth apps in comparison with that of real doctors.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.