Defining information needs in neonatal resuscitation with work domain analysis

Area of Science:

• Neonatal medicine
• Clinical informatics
• Human factors engineering

Background:

• Neonatal resuscitation requires monitoring complex, variable physiological changes.
• Informed clinical decisions depend on accurate, real-time infant physiological data.
• Effective display design is crucial for supporting clinicians during high-stakes resuscitation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the information requirements of clinicians during the first 10 minutes of neonatal resuscitation.
• To identify current gaps in information availability for neonatal transition monitoring.

Main Methods:

• A work domain analysis (WDA) was performed for the neonatal transition period.
• The analysis divided the domain into neonatal physiology and clinical support resources.
• WDA identified information needs not currently met by available resources.

Main Results:

• The physiological WDA modeled critical functions for clinician monitoring.
• The clinical resources WDA highlighted limitations in existing sensors.
• Several physiological functions lack current sensor support, leaving clinicians without vital information.

Conclusions:

• Improving the clinician's information environment is essential for neonatal resuscitation.
• Recommendations include developing novel sensors for currently unmonitored physiological functions.
• Implementing ecological interface design principles can optimize the presentation of existing data.