Digital Methodology for Mobile Clinical Decision Support Development in Long-Term Care.

The global COVID-19 pandemic has driven innovations in methods to sustain initiatives for the design, development, evaluation, and implementation of clinical support technology in long-term care settings while removing risk of infection for residents, family members, health care workers, researchers and technical professionals. We adapted traditional design and evaluation methodology for a mobile clinical decision support app - designated Mobile Application Information System for Integrated Evidence ("MAISIE") - to a completely digital design methodology that removes in-person contacts between the research team, developer, and nursing home staff and residents. We have successfully maintained project continuity for MAISIE app development with only minor challenges while working remotely. This digital design methodology can be implemented in projects where software can be installed without in-person technical support and remote work is feasible. Team skills, experience, and relationships are key considerations for adapting to digital environments and maintaining project momentum.

Remote Usability Testing to Facilitate the Continuation of Research.

Usability testing has historically been an in-person activity where test participants and evaluation researchers are co-located. Recruiting participants into usability studies can be a challenging endeavor especially when potential participants are concerned about time commitments and social distancing. The global COVID-19 pandemic has driven the development of remote usability testing methods. In this paper, we describe remote usability testing as it evolved during a pre-pandemic research study. We adapted our in-person usability evaluation methodology for a commercially available mHealth app to a remote usability testing methodology to accommodate potential participants during a more convenient participant-identified time. In doing so we met the needs, preferences, and availability of our participants and maintained research progress. Adapting to patient-centered needs through remote usability testing has the potential to facilitate continued research and engage potential participants due to its convenience, flexibility, and decrease constraints presented by geographic limits.