Sara Raftery*, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland Veronica Lambert, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland Michele Glacken, St Angela's College, Sligo, Sligo, Ireland Paula Hicks, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland Track: Research Presentation Topic: Human-Computer Interface (HCI) Design Presentation Type: Rapid-Fire Presentation Submission Type: Single Presentation Building: Mermaid Room: Room 4 - Queenshithe Date: 2013-09-23 11:45 AM – 01:00 PM Last modified: 2013-09-25

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Background: It is well established that a surgical experience frequently results in increased anxiety in children. Preoperative preparation initiatives which include various hospital based and home study programmes have been shown to reduce children’s preoperative anxiety. Engagement with hospital based programmes is frequently hampered by practical difficulties such as ad hoc availability and in-accessibility to certain populations. Additionally, increasingly shorter hospital stays pose challenges for adequate face to face preoperative preparation time post admission for surgery. In a rapidly evolving technological age, in which child focussed e-healthcare is an expectation, research has begun to examine online methods of preparing children for surgery. It is suggested that online resources are best created in keeping with the needs of the child user by involving them in the development process.
Objective: To describe the process of development and usability testing of KIDOPS, an online intervention to prepare children for elective surgery.
Method: The development of the online preoperative preparation intervention was guided by Informant Design, a user-centred design framework. In keeping with this approach children were central to an iterative design process contributing to both design and usability testing phases. Initial child engagement involved semi structured interviews with children (n=12 aged 10-15 years) who had recently undergone elective surgical procedures to determine their desired preoperative information needs, and their preferred mode of receiving this information. Subsequent child involvement included evaluation of early prototypes through to usability testing of high tech prototypes. Throughout the design process the input of healthcare professionals was also crucial to ensuring that the intervention reflected evidence-based, locally specific information, which was suitable for use in clinical practice.
Results: Involving children from the outset of the design process revealed that they experience anxiety at each juncture of the surgical journey, commencing prior to admission and continuing in the preoperative ward, the operating theatre, and post-operative period. Using an Informant Design framework, KIDOPS, an online intervention which aims to prepare children for surgery and minimise preoperative anxiety, was developed. The KIDOPS interface design reflects child informant preferences. Children’s desired preoperative information is presented using a variety of methods including animation, videos, memopads, quizzes and computer games. Usability testing, using observation and think aloud methods, enabled ongoing modification of the intervention design throughout the iterative process.
Conclusions: The Informant Design framework guided the development of KIDOPS, a cost effective and accessible online intervention to prepare children for elective surgery. Engaging with this resource may reduce levels of child anxiety in the preoperative period. A randomised controlled feasibility trial is currently being undertaken to assess the feasibility of delivering the intervention to preoperative children.