Exploring Design Opportunities for a Context-Adaptive Medical Checklist Through Technology Probe Approach

Area of Science:

• Medical informatics
• Emergency medicine
• Human-computer interaction

Background:

• Trauma resuscitation requires complex decision-making and team coordination.
• Interactive medical checklists are emerging technologies to support trauma teams.
• Understanding user interaction with these tools is crucial for effective implementation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the workflow and usage of an interactive medical checklist for trauma resuscitation.
• To examine how trauma team leaders utilize this technology during live resuscitations.
• To identify design implications for future dynamic and adaptive checklists.

Main Methods:

• Employed a technology probe approach combined with ethnographic methods.
• Included video review, interviews, and content analysis of checklist logs.
• Examined checklist use during actual trauma resuscitation events.

Main Results:

• Trauma team leaders with varying experience levels demonstrated different usage patterns.
• Some leaders frequently referred to and noted checklist items during tasks.
• Other leaders primarily used the checklist for item verification after task completion, with most items logged post-performance.

Conclusions:

• User experience and checklist interaction vary significantly among trauma team leaders.
• Design of future checklists should consider adaptability and dynamic features.
• Further research can optimize these tools for enhanced trauma care coordination.