Visualising patient wait times in emergency departments for patients and families is increasingly common, following the development of prediction models using routinely collected patient demographic, urgency and flow data. Consumers of an emergency department wait time display will have culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, are more likely to be from under-served populations and will have varied data literacy skills. The wait times are uncertain, the information is presented when people are emotionally and physically challenged, and the predictions may inform high stakes decisions. In such a stressful environment, simplicity is crucial and the visual language must cater to the diverse audience. When wait times are conveyed well, patient experience improves. Designers must ensure the visualisation is patient-centred and that data are consistently and correctly interpreted. In this article, we present the results of a design study at three hospitals in Melbourne, Australia, undertaken in 2021. We used rapid iterative testing and evaluation methodology, with patients and families from diverse backgrounds as participants, to develop and validate a wait time display. We present the design process and the results of this project. Patients, families and staff were eligible to participate if they were awaiting care in the emergency department, or worked in patient reception and waiting areas. The patient-centred approach taken in our design process varies greatly from past work led by hospital administrations, and the resulting visualisations are very distinct. Most currently displayed wait time visualisations could be adapted to better meet end-user needs. Also of note, we found that techniques developed by visualisation researchers for conveying temporal uncertainty tended to overwhelm the diverse audience rather than inform. There is a need to balance precise and comprehensive information presentation against the strong need for simplicity in such a stressful environment.

中文翻译：

---

可视化急诊科等待时间；快速迭代测试以确定患者对显示器的偏好

在使用常规收集的患者人口统计、紧急情况和流量数据开发预测模型之后，为患者和家属可视化急诊科的患者等待时间变得越来越普遍。急诊室等待时间显示器的消费者将具有不同的文化和语言背景，更有可能来自服务不足的人群，并且具有不同的数据素养技能。等待时间是不确定的，当人们在情感和身体上受到挑战时会显示信息，并且预测可能会为高风险决策提供信息。在这样一个压力很大的环境中，简单是至关重要的，视觉语言必须迎合不同的观众。当等待时间传达得当时，患者体验会得到改善。设计人员必须确保可视化以患者为中心，并且数据得到一致且正确的解释。在本文中，我们介绍了 2021 年在澳大利亚墨尔本的三家医院进行的一项设计研究的结果。我们使用快速迭代测试和评估方法，以来自不同背景的患者和家庭作为参与者，来开发和验证等待时间展示。我们介绍了这个项目的设计过程和结果。如果患者、家属和工作人员在急诊室等待治疗，或在患者接待处和等候区工作，他们就有资格参与。在我们的设计过程中采用以患者为中心的方法与过去由医院管理部门领导的工作有很大不同，由此产生的可视化效果非常明显。大多数当前显示的等待时间可视化可以调整以更好地满足最终用户的需求。同样值得注意的是，我们发现可视化研究人员开发的用于传达时间不确定性的技术往往会压倒不同的受众，而不是提供信息。在如此紧张的环境中，需要在精确和全面的信息呈现与对简单性的强烈需求之间取得平衡。