Development and Assessment of a Mobile App for Pet Vaccination Tracking

Thesis Abstract

The rising prevalence of preventable infectious diseases among domesticated pets underscores the critical importance of effective vaccination management, yet many pet owners face challenges in tracking vaccination schedules, resulting in missed or delayed immunizations. This study aims to develop, implement, and empirically assess a mobile application designed to facilitate pet vaccination tracking, thereby enhancing compliance with vaccination protocols and minimizing health risks for pets. The specific objectives include designing a user-centered mobile app, evaluating its usability and functionality through quantitative surveys, and analyzing its impact on vaccination adherence rates among pet owners. Employing a mixed-methods research design, this study integrates both qualitative and quantitative approaches to comprehensively evaluate the app’s effectiveness. The philosophical paradigm adopted is pragmatism, emphasizing practical utility and contextual relevance. The target population comprises pet owners within metropolitan areas, with a sample of 300 participants recruited through stratified random sampling from veterinary clinics, pet shops, and online pet owner communities. Data collection instruments encompass structured questionnaires to measure usability, user satisfaction, and vaccination compliance, alongside semi-structured interviews for in-depth insights. The app’s validity and reliability are established through expert review and Cronbach’s alpha testing, ensuring robustness of the quantitative measures. Data analysis involves descriptive statistics to summarize user demographics and app engagement metrics, while inferential analyses such as multiple regression and paired t-tests are employed to examine relationships between app usage and vaccination adherence over a six-month period. Thematic analysis is applied to interview transcripts to identify key themes relating to user experience and perceived benefits. The app’s development draws on established behavioral change theories, such as the Health Belief Model and the Technology Acceptance Model, to inform its design features and engagement strategies. Expected findings indicate that the mobile app significantly improves pet vaccination tracking accuracy, increases adherence rates by at least 25%, and garners high usability scores with an average System Usability Scale (SUS) rating above 80. The qualitative data are anticipated to reveal themes of increased owner confidence, convenience, and improved communication with veterinary services. The analysis is expected to demonstrate a positive correlation between app engagement and vaccination compliance, thereby validating the app’s practical utility. This research contributes to knowledge by offering a novel, scalable digital intervention tailored to pet health management, integrating behavioral science with mobile health technology. It advances understanding of digital solutions in veterinary care, particularly in resource-constrained settings where traditional record-keeping may be inadequate. The study also provides empirical evidence supporting the adoption of mobile health applications to improve preventive veterinary practices, aligning with global goals for improved animal health and zoonotic disease control. The main conclusion emphasizes that well-designed mobile apps serve as effective tools for enhancing pet vaccination compliance, with significant potential to reduce preventable disease outbreaks. Recommendations include integrating the app into veterinary public health strategies, promoting broader adoption through awareness campaigns, and continuously updating app features based on user feedback. Future research should explore long-term impacts on pet health outcomes and extend app functionalities to encompass broader aspects of pet health monitoring, such as deworming and nutritional management, thereby contributing to a comprehensive digital approach to veterinary preventive care.