Increasing patient engagement through gamification

In today's healthcare landscape, patient involvement has become a key concept that not only improves the quality of care, but also has a significant impact on health outcomes and patient satisfaction. But what exactly is behind this term? Patient involvement refers to the active participation of patients in their own healthcare, whether through adherence to treatment plans, active involvement in decisions that affect their health, or taking responsibility for their lifestyle and health. A higher level of patient involvement can not only improve the effectiveness of medical treatments, but also reduce costs, for example by avoiding hospitalisation or reducing the incidence of chronic diseases. Against this backdrop, it is clear that promoting patient engagement is an important step towards transforming healthcare.

Gamification as a motivator

Gamification refers to the integration of game-like elements and mechanics into non-game contexts to influence people's engagement, motivation and behaviour. This technique has proven to be highly effective in a variety of areas, from marketing and corporate training to increasing productivity in the workplace. By applying game principles such as scoring systems, levels, competition and rewards, complex tasks can be presented and accomplished in a fun way.

Extrinsic vs. intrinsic motivation

When integrating gamification into healthcare, it is important to consider the different sources of motivation that drive participants to engage and change their behaviour. Both extrinsic and intrinsic motivational factors play a decisive role here.

Extrinsic motivation is fuelled by external incentives such as rewards, recognition or competition. These can help to arouse the interest of participants and motivate them to take part. For example, point systems or ranking lists in health apps can help to increase the attention and commitment of users by offering an incentive to achieve certain goals or maintain certain behaviours. Material rewards such as discounts on health products or free services can also serve as an incentive for certain health-promoting behaviours.

On the other hand, intrinsic motivation plays an equally important role. This type of motivation arises from the participants' inner desire to engage in an activity because they find it interesting, challenging or personally meaningful. Intrinsic motivation can be created by designing gamification elements that make the game experience itself attractive, be it through the introduction of exciting challenges, the opportunity for further development or the creation of a supportive community. If participants experience the game as fulfilling and enriching, they are more likely to make a long-term commitment and change their behaviour.

An effective integration of gamification into healthcare takes into account both extrinsic and intrinsic motivational factors to promote balanced and sustainable participant engagement. By considering both external incentives as well as personal interest and enjoyment of the game, healthcare programmes and applications can be developed that maximise participant motivation and support long-term positive behaviour change.

Playful elements and mechanics from the games industry

Gamification, i.e. the application of game-like elements and mechanics in non-game contexts, has the potential to significantly increase user engagement and motivation. Here are some of the key elements and mechanics from the gaming industry, along with the type of motivation they typically address:

• Point systems: point systems are one of the most basic mechanics in games. Players receive points for achieving certain goals or completing tasks (motivation type: extrinsic)
• Levels and progress: Levels offer a structured way of measuring the progress of players. Reaching a higher level is often associated with new skills or rewards (motivation type: extrinsic and intrinsic).
• Badges and achievements: Badges and achievements are virtual rewards that players receive for reaching certain milestones. They serve as recognition and motivation (motivation type: extrinsic).
• Leaderboards: Leaderboards encourage competition by comparing players with each other and rewarding the best (motivation type: extrinsic).
• Challenges and missions: Challenges and missions give players specific goals that they have to achieve within a certain period of time. These can be short or long-term (motivation type: extrinsic and intrinsic).
• Real-time feedback and rewards: Real-time feedback and instant rewards help players to see their progress immediately and are often used to reinforce behaviour (motivation type: extrinsic).
• Personalised avatars: Players can create and customise avatars that represent them in the game. This creates a deeper connection and a sense of identification with the system (motivation type: intrinsic).
• Social exchange and support: Many games promote social exchange and cooperation through multiplayer modes or social platforms within the game (motivation type: intrinsic).

Opportunities in the healthcare market

The integration of gamification in the healthcare sector opens up a wide range of opportunities to increase patient engagement and make healthcare more efficient. Creative software solutions that utilise both extrinsic and intrinsic motivation strategies can be used to find innovative ways to improve healthcare.

Two practical examples show what this can look like in practice:

1. a day with DiaCare: motivation through rewards

Imagine you have been living with diabetes for several years. The daily challenges of the disease - from controlling your blood sugar levels to taking your medication - are often overwhelming. One day you discover ‘DiaCare’, a new app developed specifically for diabetes management.

After downloading DiaCare and registering, the app prompts you to enter and regularly update your health data. For every task you successfully complete, for example measuring blood sugar, logging meals or taking medication, you will receive points. You can exchange these points for practical rewards:

• Discounts on health products: Use your points to get discounts on diabetes-related items such as blood glucose meters or test strips.
• Vouchers for pharmacies: Exchange your points for vouchers that you can redeem on your next visit to the pharmacy.
• Gym memberships: Get discounted or free memberships to local gyms to increase your physical activity.

The app also offers a ranking system that shows you how you compare to other exercisers. This friendly competition gives you extra motivation to reach your health goals and continuously work on your wellbeing. DiaCare's extrinsic incentives turn the daily tasks of diabetes management into a motivating and rewarding challenge.

Regular use of DiaCare not only makes you feel more informed about your health, but also more active in your own health care.

2. the path to healing with ReflectWell

Imagine a young man who has been struggling with depression for years. As he has difficulty keeping track of his mood and progress, his therapist recommends the ReflectWell app. This app was developed specifically to help patients manage their mental health.

ReflectWell encourages the young man to take a few minutes every morning and evening to reflect on his feelings and experiences. The intuitive user interface makes it easy for him to categorise his thoughts and rate his mood on a scale from ‘very bad’ to ‘very good’.

He is particularly pleased with the ability to track his progress in a clearly organised diary. Every month, he can see graphically how his mood has changed over time. These reviews are not only interesting, but also motivating. He recognises how small positive changes such as regular walks or new hobbies have improved his mood in the long term.

A valuable feature of ReflectWell is the ability to record and reflect on positive events. Whenever he experiences something positive, be it a good conversation with a friend or a quiet moment in nature, he can record this in the app.

By continuously reflecting on his own feelings and experiences, the young man has developed a deeper intrinsic motivation to work on his recovery. ReflectWell has helped him to develop an awareness of his mental health and encouraged him to actively work on his wellbeing.

These examples show how the skilful use of gamification in the healthcare market can activate both extrinsic and intrinsic motivational factors to maximise patient engagement. Innovative applications such as DiaCare and ReflectWell not only open up new ways to improve healthcare, but also a wide range of opportunities to influence and improve patients' quality of life in the long term.

Summary and outlook

Gamification has proven to be an innovative method of increasing patient engagement and motivation in healthcare. Through the use of playful elements and mechanisms, both extrinsic and intrinsic motivation can be specifically promoted.

The potential for the use of gamification in healthcare is enormous. In the future, technologies and personalised approaches can be developed to better identify and serve individual patient needs. In addition, the continuous analysis of data generated by gamification offers valuable insights into patient behaviour and the effectiveness of treatment strategies. This can help to further optimise healthcare and develop tailored solutions that are not only efficient, but also motivating and entertaining.

The future of healthcare could become not only more patient-centred, but also more interactive and sustainable through the integration of gamification.

You can find more exciting topics from the world of adesso in our previous blog posts.