Using a Web-Based App to Deliver Rehabilitation Strategies to Persons With Chronic Conditions: Development and Usability Study.
Julie Richardson, Lori Letts, Susanne Sinclair and 7 others
PMID 33734090WHAT IT FOUND
Older adults with chronic conditions could use this self-management web app, but many struggled with navigation and instructions.
Clinicians liked the evidence-based content, while flagging technical problems, unclear wording, and missing help features.
Key findings
01Eleven adults aged 45 years or older used the app in usability testing, and the app received a mean System Usability Scale score of 71.14, which the authors describe as acceptable.
02The most common usability issue across tasks was navigation, with users unsure what to do next, which content was clickable, and what button labels meant.
03Clinician evaluators recorded the highest number of violations for content that should be accurate, colloquial, comprehensive, and succinct (n=24), and they flagged missing help and documentation.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
Only 11 adults were tested, and they were screened for high computer proficiency, so results may not apply to people with low digital literacy. The usability sample was not ethnically diverse; all participants were of European heritage and English speaking. Eye-tracking data were collected but not analyzed. The therapist messaging function was not fully tested because test accounts were not linked to therapist accounts. The app was revised after usability testing and heuristic evaluation, but neither assessment was repeated to confirm that the changes resolved the problems. The study reports usability and clinician impressions, not patient health outcomes. The clinician evaluators were a convenience sample of 6 clinicians.
Declared interests
None declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that this app improves function, symptoms, or adherence. It reports usability testing and clinician feedback in 11 selected computer-proficient adults, not clinical outcomes, and the authors did not repeat testing after revisions.