Usability and functionality
INTERACTION
Six patients commented that the devices were fast and easy to use, with clear indications and instructions by the care team. Four patients were below 50 years old, two were above 60 years old, and all were in full-time or part-time employment.Nevertheless, patients encountered technical challenges with the devices. Four patients were frustrated that the cuff did not fit them well. F035 (male, 67 years old) lamented that it was “really big, stiff!”, and F009 (female, 47 years old) was frustrated as “it keeps dropping down…By the time I can take the measurement, I think my blood pressure shoot up already.” S003 (care manager) acknowledged the issue, “So the first batch they were all quite stiff, very hard to apply. So no matter how you do it, it’s always quite loose…” Cuffs were subsequently replaced for some patients during the initial stage of the trial to prevent inaccurate readings and loss of motivation from patients.Many patients also experienced challenges with the gateway, which they referred to as “phone”. They described the connection issues and that it would switch to flight mode unknowingly as the option was close to the power button, thereby affecting the transmission of readings. Some found the gateway cumbersome as it added to the number of devices they had to manage. The care coordinators, whom patients usually approached for troubleshooting, recalled that some patients withdrew from the trial due to the gateway issues. S001 escalated some issues to the vendor, while S007 was concerned that these performance issues might affect patients’ confidence in the intervention and relationship with the care team “like they lose trust in our treatment because the devices don’t work well or not as accurate as how they expect it to be.”When asked about how the issues could be ameliorated, most patients, care managers and care coordinators expressed preference for a more user-friendly machine that could integrate BP measurement and data transmission more seamlessly. Patients who provided suggestions were all professionals with tertiary education, including IT professionals, managers, and teachers. F022 who was working in senior management, remarked that the intervention was outdated and advised the team to obtain user experience feedback as the intervention was being implemented and enhanced.User experience is something that’s very important…put on a hat of a profile of the client, whether it’s a particular age group, then you try to empathize how that person feels…Maybe some of them are not so technologically-savvy…go through with them…and make it simpler. Interaction can be just a one-touch button, to make it more user-friendly. Things should be intuitive. (F022, male, 64 years old)