Re-thinking Usability: Some Thoughts
Diane H. Sonnenwald
Göteborg University &
University College of Borås
The nanoManipulator
Enables scientists to interact directly with physical
samples, ranging in size from DNA to cells
Adenovirus
DNA
(Taylor & Superfine, 1999; Guthold, et al., 1999)
nanoManipulator Collaboratory
Project History
• Field study: Scientists collaborating, working alone
• Participatory design meetings with
scientists & computer scientists
• User interface design study
• Usability testing
• Experimental evaluation study
- Repeated measures (within subject) design
- Working face-to-face vs. working remotely
- Each session: 2.5 hours on average
• Longitudinal field study
nanoManipulator Collaboratory
• Some successes
- Internet based scheduling tool
- Wireless phone & headset
- User interface
- Inspiration for new science (biomedical research)
- Inspiration for other technology
- High school science classes
• Some failures
- Scientists want the system, find it easy to use &
don’t use it all that much
- Excluded from commercial version
- Great front-end to the wrong scientific instrument
A Few Thoughts….
Are our current approaches to
design in e-science good enough?
Can we do better?
• Consequences of failures in system design
- Impact on individual lives, e.g., caller id
- Question of return on investments in research
• Ownership of failures
- First step to discovering alternatives…
Trying a Different Approach…
• Evaluation of a technology’s potential
- After ‘proof-of-concept’ prototype
- Concurrent with computer science research
- Focused on a specific context of use
• Two components
- Experimental lab study using simulation
- Stakeholder technology acceptance study
• Technology
- 3D telepresence technology
- for use in emergency medical consultation
Extending medical expertise throughout,
between & beyond hospitals in trauma situations
Trauma
- “Hidden epidemic of modern society”
- Responsible for more productive years lost
than heart disease, cancer & stroke combined
Project Team
• UNC School of Medicine
- Bruce Cairns, Jim Manning, Gene Fried
• UNC Computer Science
- Henry Fuchs, Greg Welch, Herman Towles,
Ketan Meyer-Patel, Jim Mahaney & students
• Swedish School of Library & Info Science
- Hanna Maurin, Diane Sonnenwald
Evaluation Approach
Part I: Experimental lab study
• Post-test design
-Task performance
- Paramedics’ perceptions
• 3 conditions:
- Paramedic working alone
- Paramedic in consultation with a M.D: via 2D video
- Paramedic in consultation with M.D. via 3D proxy
• Simulation of emergency medical situation & technology
Emergency Medical Simulation
• METI human patient simulator (HPS)
• Management of the difficult airway
- Diagnosis & perform a cricothyrotomy
• Most common cause of preventable death in
prehospital care of injured patients
• Description in `When doctors make mistakes,´
Complications, Gawande, 2002
• Car accident scenario
Evaluation Data Collection
• Video (3 views) & audio recordings
• HPS mannequin output
• Post-questionnaire: Self-efficacy, trust, usefulness of
info, quality of interaction, innovation adoption
• Post-interview
Paramedics’ Perspectives
• Realism of scenario
It felt real. [I was] absolutely absorbed. Absolutely.
It was like life.
The manniquin was awesome.
• Appropriateness of medical task
Cric skills scare the crap out of you.
It’s something I hope I don’t have to do.
It’s difficult making that next step, the decision that
you’re gonna have to do a cric.
• Role of consulting M.D.
Doing it with him...was cool...it made a big difference.
It gives you ...more confidence.
Evaluation Approach
Part II
• Stakeholder technology acceptance study
- What might facilitate or impede the adoption &
use of 3D telepresence?
- Interviews/focus groups with relevant stakeholders
e.g., Hospital administrators, nurses, paramedics,
patients, health insurance companies
Next Steps
• Experiment data analysis
• Technology acceptance study
• Reflection on usefulness of approach
This work is funded by the National Library of
Medicine, contract N01-LM-3-3514: Extending
Medical Expertise Through, Between and
Beyond Hospitals