Background: User-centered design (UCD) processes often generate extensive lists of potential software features, necessitating prioritization methods to guide development. The MoSCoW method, categorizing features as “must have,” “should have,” “could have,” or “won’t have,” is widely used in software development for its simplicity and ease of adoption. Despite its popularity, limited evidence exists on its application within health informatics. The Decision Aid Navigator (DEAN) system, a clinical decision support tool, required prioritization of features for its administrative portal to ensure #usability and alignment with health information technology (HIT) professionals’ needs. Objective: This study aims to describe how health professionals engaged with the MoSCoW prioritization process during the design of the DEAN administrative portal and to consider how discussion and interaction influenced feature prioritization outcomes. Methods: A 74-minute web-based group session included 4 HIT professionals experienced in managing clinical decision support systems. Participants independently rated 30 proposed portal features using MoSCoW categories following brief discussions of each feature. Session transcripts, videos, and rating behaviors were analyzed using a single-case qualitative analysis to describe how the MoSCoW process supported prioritization and expert engagement. Results: Participants rated 37% (11) of 30 features as “must have,” 13% (4) as “should have,” 20% (6) as “could have,” and none as “won’t have.” The remaining 30% (9) showed distributed ratings without a clear majority. The summary percentages are derived from majority vote, not from individual-level ratings. All participants adjusted their ratings, often prompted by group discussion or clarification from the technical lead. Qualitative analysis describes four key insights: (1) interpretations of feature descriptions may vary; (2) group discussion generated suggestions for alternative design solutions; (3) group discussion identified implementation considerations; and (4) participants considered differences in real-world use vs idealized use when ranking features. Conclusions: The MoSCoW method appeared feasible, accessible, and potentially pragmatic for prioritizing features in a UCD process for a clinical decision support system. Group discussion enriched the prioritization session by surfacing implementation insights and design refinements beyond numeric rankings alone. Findings suggest, in this single case, that the use of MoSCoW is understandable to health informatics teams seeking structured yet flexible stakeholder engagement in software feature prioritization.

<p>Marketing myopia is a concept introduced by Theodore C. Levitt in a 1960 article, emphasizing a shortsighted approach businesses often take in their marketing strategies. It describes the tendency ...

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Google Maps in India is a great example of designing with real people in mind, tackling everything from landmark-based directions to language barriers and patchy internet. By listening to users and testing in the chaos of real-life streets, Google created a navigation tool that millions now rely on every day.

Sanjay K Mohindroo

A thought-provoking guide on HCI and UX trends that inspires innovation. Join the conversation now! #HCI #UX #IntuitiveDesign #GestureControl #VoiceControl #BrainComputerInterface #MultimodalInteraction #UserCenteredDesign #FutureTrends

Background: Young adults in the United States are experiencing accelerating rates of suicidal thoughts and behaviors but have the lowest rates of formal mental health care. Digital suicide prevention ...

The Institute on Digital Health and Innovation invites you to join a comprehensive three-day academic workshop focused on the development, implementation and evaluation of digital health…

Accessibility testing is often focused on compliance with standards rather than ensuring a smooth experience for end users. This webinar examines how to develop and harness user journeys to connect…

Background: Pediatric chronic pain affects up to one-third of youth and is associated with significant disruptions in social, emotional, and behavioral functioning. Although behavioral treatments are effective, access remains limited due to geographic, financial, and systemic barriers. Digital behavioral health interventions offer a promising solution, but many lack user-centered design, iterative refinement, and implementation-informed development strategies that support #usability and scalability. Objective: This study aimed to develop and iteratively refine iGET Living, a digital graded exposure intervention for youth with chronic pain, using a combined user-centered and implementation-informed framework, and to evaluate its preliminary acceptability, #feasibility, and user-perceived success. Methods: Guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) and the mHealth (mobile health) Agile Development and Lifecycle model, intervention development proceeded through 3 phases. Phase 0 translated an evidence-based in-person graded exposure treatment (GET Living) into an initial digital prototype. Phase 1 involved iterative user-centered refinement across 3 cycles of qualitative development sessions with youth with chronic pain (n=15), incorporating think-aloud #usability testing, Likert-rated feedback, and rapid qualitative analysis mapped to CFIR constructs to guide real-time modifications to content, design, and functionality. Phase 2 piloted the refined intervention with a new sample of youth (n=38, n=30 completers) recruited from a tertiary pediatric pain clinic to evaluate #feasibility, acceptability, treatment credibility and expectancy, and user-perceived functional improvements. Quantitative outcomes were summarized descriptively, and qualitative exit interview data were analyzed using rapid qualitative analysis. Results: Across development cycles, youth feedback informed substantive refinements to the intervention, including reducing text density, incorporating animated educational videos, enhancing interactive features, and improving navigation and layout. These changes resulted in progressive improvements in clarity, satisfaction, and acceptability across prototypes. In the Phase 2 pilot study, participants reported moderate-to-high treatment credibility (mean of 19.71 out of 30) and expectancy (mean of 17.96 out of 30), as well as high satisfaction (mean of 46.12 out of 60). Acceptability ratings across domains of the Theoretical Framework of Acceptability were favorable. Qualitative exit interviews highlighted the interventions’ perceived role in helping youth re-engage in valued activities. Conclusions: Using a combined CFIR and agile development approach, iGET Living emerged as a feasible, acceptable, engaging digital graded exposure intervention for youth with chronic pain. These findings highlight the value of integrating implementation frameworks and participatory design early in digital intervention development and support further evaluation in a preliminary efficacy trial. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05079984; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05079984 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): RR2-10.1136/bmjopen-2022-065997

Background: Mobile health (mHealth) interventions can expand access to and engagement in lifesaving treatment for pregnant and postpartum people with a substance use disorder. Yet, many people with lived experience and substance use providers alike are often excluded from mHealth intervention development, limiting opportunities to provide feedback on critical design components such as #usability, cultural relevance, and compatibility with real-world practice. Objective: The study engaged pregnant and postpartum people and substance use providers in a formative evaluation to refine an mHealth intervention designed to support recovery. Methods: Pregnant and postpartum participants (n=11) and providers working in recovery settings (n=13) across Missouri reviewed the same mHealth intervention. Participants completed a survey and semistructured qualitative questions on #usability and compatibility after reviewing the same mHealth intervention. Survey responses and qualitative themes were compared across groups. Post hoc analyses examined differences between pregnant and postpartum participants who had used the app and those who had not (n=8) to identify barriers to participation. Results: Both participant groups reported similar themes related to the #usability and compatibility of the mHealth intervention, including a need for simplified navigation and greater personalization of app content. The e-coaching feature and directory of recovery-focused resources were viewed as valuable by both groups. Uniquely, pregnant and postpartum participants emphasized the need for app content addressing craving management, emotional triggers, and parenting stress. These participants also requested more frequent communication with the e-coach than providers recommended. Nonapp users differed from app users by race, education, and household characteristics, underscoring structural barriers to engagement. Conclusions: Engaging both pregnant and postpartum people and providers in formative evaluation reveals overlapping and distinct priorities for mHealth design. Findings highlight that user-informed development is essential for improving #usability, engagement, and recovery outcomes, including reaching those least likely to engage with traditional or digital treatment supports.

Background: Mobile health (mHealth) interventions are prevalent, but people from marginalized communities are less likely to use digital health technology to support self-management behaviors. Community engagement can inform healthcare design to enhance a hypertension self-management mHealth intervention. Objective: We applied human centered design (HCD) to determine appropriate iterations of an existing hypertension intervention. Methods: Through an equity-focused, community-centered approach, we strove to optimize an mHealth application. We used validated theories and frameworks as well as an HCD methodology organized into three fundamental design skills: 1) Methods to directly observe user experiences; 2) Methods to analyze barriers to ideal intervention use; and 3) Methods to design future iterations. Results: In October 2023, we conducted a series of HCD activities with a Community Advisory Board (N=8) to refine an mHealth intervention for hypertension. Participants tested app prototypes with blood pressure monitors and suggested content modifications to enhance intervention fidelity. Among 6 participants, #usability testing scored 67.5 (benchmark 68 = “Above Average”), with all users finding the tool easy to use. Feedback identified critical needs, barriers, and workarounds for future mHealth iterations. Conclusions: This study was a novel use-case example of HCD as a patient-centered methodology to improve a hypertension management tool.

Background: Software solutions for wearable-based stress monitoring offer significant potential in healthcare, particularly for vulnerable populations such as individuals with dementia or persistent physical symptoms. Despite technological advances, designing user-centered, ethically grounded, and contextually relevant software remains challenging. Vulnerable populations often have specific cognitive, physical, and emotional needs that require customization, yet these are rarely prioritized in mainstream development. Our so-called Sensors2Care project addressed these challenges by co-developing stress-monitoring prototypes in collaboration with stakeholders from healthcare, law, and technology within a transdisciplinary setting. Objective: This article has two aims: first, to describe how the Sensors2Care project operationalized the TransDisciplinary Approach (TDA) within a Learning Community (LC) to guide the development of stress-monitoring software; second, to share stakeholder needs and design requirements for wearable technologies in complex healthcare contexts, derived from this process. Methods: The Sensors2Care project applied a TDA embedded in an LC. This approach combined participatory design research with mixed methods across three iterative components: requirements gathering, prototype development, and early-stage evaluation. Research activities included scoping reviews, semi-structured interviews, focus groups, legal analyses, and field testing. In the LC, students and researchers from health professions, computer science, and law collaborated with patients, (in)formal caregivers and industry partners in a transdisciplinary consortium. User stories served as both a methodological tool and design outcome, helping to capture stakeholder needs and align input from technical, health, and legal domains. Feedback was collected continuously and used to refine requirements and prototypes throughout the development process. Results: User stories revealed seven key themes relevant to developing and using wearable-based stress monitoring, including strategic use, notifications, user input, data insight, data access and sharing, hardware design, and support. Stakeholders emphasized the need for customization, durability, and comfort, aligned with the cognitive and physical needs of the target populations. Prototype evaluations confirmed the practical relevance of these features and revealed a need for training and insight into long-term #usability. Beyond their role in capturing content-driven input, user stories also supported transdisciplinary collaboration by aligning legal, health, technical, and experiential perspectives. This was facilitated by the LC structure, which enabled sustained engagement between students, researchers, and societal stakeholders and illustrated the #feasibility of implementing TDA in a university context. Conclusions: This project illustrates how TDA, when embedded in an LC, supports the co-development of ethically grounded, contextually relevant, and practically applicable stress-monitoring software for vulnerable populations. The iterative design process enabled early integration of legal, health, and technical considerations, while user stories supported structured collaboration across domains. Although the project resulted in concrete prototypes and clustered design requirements, further research is needed to assess long-term use and real-world implementation across healthcare contexts. Embedding TDA in LCs may strengthen future professionals' ability to address complex healthcare challenges collaboratively.