Background

Intensive care units (ICU) are busy round the clock and it is difficult to maintain low sound levels that support patient rest. To help ICU staff manage activities we developed a visual display that monitors and reports sound levels in real-time. This facilitates immediate feedback, encouraging proactive behavior change to limit disturbances.

Methods

Following the principles of user-centered design practices we created our ‘user persona’ to understand the needs and goals of potential users of the system. We then conducted iterative user testing with current members of the ICU team, primarily using the ‘think aloud’ method to refine the design and functionality of our novel system. Ethnography evaluated team use of the display.

Results

The final design was simple, clear, and efficient, and both functional and aesthetically pleasing for the key user demographic. We identified challenges in the implementation and adoption process that were separate from the ‘usability’ of the system itself.

Conclusions

Embedding the design process within the core user demographic ensured the final product delivered relevant information for key users, and that this information was intuitive to interpret. Initiating sustainable change is not straightforward. It requires recognition of cultural practices within teams, departments, professions, organizations, and strategies to maximize engagement.

中文翻译：

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监测重症监护室的声级：一个混合方法系统开发项目，用于优化医疗环境中新电子界面的设计特征

背景

重症监护病房 (ICU) 日以继夜地忙碌，很难维持支持患者休息的低声级。为了帮助 ICU 工作人员管理活动，我们开发了一个可视化显示器，可以实时监控和报告声级。这有助于即时反馈，鼓励积极的行为改变以限制干扰。

方法

遵循以用户为中心的设计实践原则，我们创建了“用户角色”以了解系统潜在用户的需求和目标。然后，我们与 ICU 团队的当前成员进行了迭代用户测试，主要使用“大声思考”方法来改进我们新系统的设计和功能。民族志评估了团队对显示器的使用。

结果

最终的设计简单、清晰、高效，并且对关键用户群体来说既实用又美观。我们确定了实施和采用过程中的挑战，这些挑战与系统本身的“可用性”是分开的。

结论

将设计过程嵌入到核心用户人口统计中，确保最终产品为关键用户提供相关信息，并且这些信息可以直观地解释。启动可持续变革并非易事。它需要在团队、部门、专业、组织和策略中认可文化实践，以最大限度地提高参与度。