Usability Evaluation of a Noninvasive Neutropenia Screening Device (PointCheck) for Patients Undergoing Cancer...

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Medical Devices
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Chemotherapy patients risk serious infections due to neutropenia, a low white blood cell count.
• Febrile neutropenia, a common and potentially fatal chemotherapy side effect, requires timely detection of severe neutropenia (<500 absolute neutrophil count/μL).
• Current blood draw methods for neutropenia monitoring are invasive and limited to clinical settings, hindering frequent or portable monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the usability of PointCheck, a noninvasive optical device for screening severe neutropenia.
• To identify user interface, functionality, and design issues from the perspective of untrained users.

Main Methods:

• A multicenter study involving 154 untrained participants evaluated PointCheck usability.
• A mixed-method approach included user testing observations, qualitative questionnaires, and the System Usability Scale (SUS) survey.
• Quantitative and qualitative data were collected to assess perceived usability and satisfaction.

Main Results:

• 108 out of 154 participants (70.1%) achieved SUS scores above 80.8, with a mean SUS score of 86.1.
• 145 out of 151 users (96%) reported learning to use PointCheck very quickly.
• 141 out of 151 users (93.4%) felt very confident using the device.

Conclusions:

• PointCheck is a novel, noninvasive technology for home-based neutropenia detection.
• First-time users can operate PointCheck safely and effectively in a simulated home environment.
• The device demonstrates excellent usability, ranking in the top tenth percentile for systems evaluated by the SUS.