Usability assessment of a mobile app for patients with peripherally inserted central catheters.
Aline Nair Biaggio Mota, Ruth Natalia Teresa Turrini
PMID 36629724WHAT IT FOUND
Patients with PICC lines rated a new discharge app highly usable, with a mean score of 82.7 out of 100.
Older patients and those who needed longer to learn the interface gave lower scores, suggesting discharge training may need to be paced for these groups.
Key findings
01The mean System Usability Scale score for patients was 82.7 out of 100, falling in the 'excellent' range.
02Usability scores dropped as patient age increased and as the time needed to handle the app increased.
03Eighty percent of patients reported feeling safe to be discharged with a PICC line when using the app.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The sample was small and non-random, recruited from a single hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study assessed usability and user perception, not whether the app actually reduced complications or improved clinical outcomes. Family members and caregivers were excluded from the assessment due to pandemic restrictions, despite often being key in outpatient care. Statistical power for subgroup analyses was limited by the sample size.
Declared interests
The app is registered under process No. BR512021001511-8 at the National Institute of Industrial Property. The text does not explicitly state funding sources or author conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the high usability scores as evidence that the app improves patient safety or reduces PICC complications. This study only tested whether people could use the interface easily; it did not measure clinical outcomes.