Development and Validation of Digital Decision Aids to Support Medication Adherence in Older Adults: A Scoping Review.

INTRODUCTION: The development of technology to support medication management and adherence among older adults is rising. Many of these technologies offer diverse features, which add complexity when making a choice. Evidence-based decision aids can inform decision-making in such situations. To inform the development of such a decision aid, it is necessary to review the literature on the development and validation of decision aids that impact medication adherence. Therefore, this study aims to review the available literature on digital decision aids that examine the impact on medication adherence and investigate their features, development, and validation processes. METHODS: Adopting the Arksey and O'Malley scoping review framework, a comprehensive search was conducted using PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, IPA and Scopus, using four key concepts: medication adherence, decision aids/tools, older adults, and software/technology. Eligibility criteria included studies that enrolled older adults with a mean/median age of 65 years, published protocols for studies that supported decision-making, published in the English language, and examined and reported the development and/or validation and/or evaluation of digital decision aids. RESULTS: Our search identified 3526 records. After removing 947 duplicates, 2579 records underwent title and abstract screening, of which 726 proceeded to full-text screening. Following full-text screening, one research protocol met all eligibility criteria and was included in the review. An additional 16 systematic reviews were examined to identify potentially relevant studies from their reference lists; however, none of the studies identified through this supplementary screening met the eligibility criteria. CONCLUSION: The limited number of eligible studies shows a substantial gap in the literature on the development and validation of digital decision aids that support medication adherence among older adults. Further research in this field is needed to develop and validate evidence-based and user-centered digital decision aids for this population.