Reviewing the User-Centered Design Process for a Comprehensive Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) App

Min Ji Kim, Sarah Schroeder, Shuan Chan, Kyle Hickerson and Yi-Ching Lee
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Min Ji Kim: Human Factors and Applied Cognition, Psychology Department, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA
Sarah Schroeder: Human Factors and Applied Cognition, Psychology Department, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA
Shuan Chan: Human Factors and Applied Cognition, Psychology Department, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA
Kyle Hickerson: Human Factors and Applied Cognition, Psychology Department, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA
Yi-Ching Lee: Human Factors and Applied Cognition, Psychology Department, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 3, 1-17

Abstract: The objective of this study was to design a user-centered mobile health (mHealth) application for individuals with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and evaluate its design features and effectiveness for use by doctors. Prior to designing, our team undertook a discovery process that involved creating personas, conducting a competitor analysis and heuristic evaluation of existing apps, along with interviews with acid reflux patients. Then, we created a low-fidelity prototype, which was revised on the basis of several rounds of user testing. During the design phase, each round of user testing included a mix of surveys, concurrent think-alouds, and interviews to gather user feedback on the prototypes. Lastly, an evaluation phase consisting of gathering feedback on the user-centered design approach from user experience experts and medical doctors specialized in GERD was conducted. Overall, the final GERD app includes important features for tracking symptoms and triggers, analytics, data export, and community information, while promoting individualization, accessibility, and usability. The documentation of the design process of this app serves as a reference point for future medical app developers as it followed an empirically supported user-centered design strategy and resulted in an app which received positive feedback from users and human factors experts. We also intend to share some of the limitations due to the constrained resources, as well as potential ways to strengthen the design process for mHealth applications.

Keywords: human factors; mobile apps; digital health; mHealth; design; usability; user testing; behavior change; health psychology; health interventions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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