Hans C. Ossebaard|E.R. Seydel|Lisette van Gemert?Pijnen
Online usability and patients with long-term conditions: A mixed-methods approach
University of Twente|National Institute for Public Health and the Environment|University of Twente|University of Twente
improve information position health care consumers facilitate decisionmaking behavior health dutch ministry health commissioned national institute public health environment develop host manage public national health care portal wwwkiesbeternl internet portal used 4 million visitors 2010 among increasing amount patients use portal information decision making medical issues healthy living health care providers topics first objective examine usability aspects portal kiesbeternl matter chronic patients informal carers regard information seeking selfmanagement decision making line health information variables second objective make evidencebased practical recommendations usability improvement innovative combination techniques semistructured interviews ehealth literacy scale scenariobased study using thinkaloud protocol screen capture software focus group used study usability line information seeking behavior non random judgment sample three groups patients n 21 longterm medical conditions arthritis asthma diabetes search strategy mostly used 65 relatively welleducated subjects orienteering users longterm conditions carers expect tailored support national health portal help navigate search find detailed information need encounter serious problems usability issues diseasespecific patients indicate need personalized information report low impact selfmanagement decision making overall judgment usability rated 7 likert type 010 scale based outcomes recommendations could formulated led major adaptations improve usability nonrepresentative composition small non random judgment sample permit generalization populations cognitive bias cannot quantified however mixed methods applied valid conclusions drawn regard usability issues