Gebrauchstauglichkeit von Medizinprodukten in kritischen Situationen der häuslichen Gesundheitsversorgung

• Usability of medical devices in critical home healthcare situations

Rasche, Peter; Nitsch, Verena (Thesis advisor); Radermacher, Klaus (Thesis advisor)

Aachen : Shaker (2021)
Book, Dissertation / PhD Thesis

In: Industrial engineering and ergonomics 38
Page(s)/Article-Nr.: IV, 256 Seiten : Illustrationen, Diagramme

Dissertation, RWTH Aachen University, 2021

Abstract

Healthcare in Germany is changing. Clinical care processes are being shifted to the home environment of patients. As a result of this change, patients or their family care-givers are increasingly responsible for the use of (medical) products in home health care. The problem addressed in this dissertation is the consideration of the performance limitations of lay persons (patients or their carers) as a result of the stress of a critical situation or an emergency, or of the acute medical symptoms occurring in such a situation, in the evaluation of medical and other health-related products in home health care. To solve this problem, the Emergency Usability Lab was developed with a focus on critical situations in home health care. A systematic examination of the state of research showed that this problem has not yet been sufficiently scientifically investigated. Accordingly, the Emergency Usability Lab was developed within this dissertation. The starting point for the development of this laboratory were common methods of psychological stress research. Three empirical studies were conducted, which were linked to each other and showed that the examined stressors, discontinuous white noise, stroboscopic glasses and a breathing mask in combination with a weight waistcoat, are suitable to cause a subjective stress state in test persons and to influence their objective performance negatively. The practical use of this laboratory in the context of the evaluation of the suitability for use was examined by evaluating two home healthcare products. The results show that by using the laboratory for complex medical devices, such as a blood glucose meter, a higher number of weak points and problems in usability can be identified than without its use. The Emergency Usability Lab thus makes a first contribution to addressing the practical investigation of stress-related performance limitations in the evaluation of the usability of home health care devices used independently by laypersons.

Institutions

• Chair and Institute of Industrial Engineering and Ergonomics [417110]