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2019 HSR&D/QUERI National Conference Abstract

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4083 — Large-Scale Usability Measurement of the VA Geriatric Scholars Program's Beers Medication Dashboard

Lead/Presenter: Brittany Duford-Hutchinson,  COIN - Salt Lake City
All Authors: Duford-Hutchinson B (College of Nursing, Nursing Informatics, University of Utah), Sauer BC (Division of Epidemiology, University of Utah and Salt Lake City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Health Services Research and Development (IDEAS), Center) Kramer BJ (Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Greater Los Angeles Medical Center and Division of Geriatric Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA) Richter Lagha R (Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Greater Los Angeles Medical Center) Leng J (Division of Epidemiology, University of Utah and Salt Lake City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Health Services Research and Development (IDEAS) Center) Patel S (Division of Epidemiology, University of Utah and Salt Lake City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Health Services Research and Development (IDEAS) Center) Halwani A (Division of Epidemiology, University of Utah and Salt Lake City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Health Services Research and Development (IDEAS) Center) Burningham Z (Division of Epidemiology, University of Utah and Salt Lake City Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Health Services Research and Development (IDEAS) Center)

Objectives:
The Beers Medication Dashboard (BMD) has been developed to assist Geriatric Scholars with the implementation of a local quality improvement (QI) project that aims to reduce the number of potentially inappropriate medications issued to older Veterans. During early-phase development, usability testing was conducted in a controlled setting among a small number of testers (n = 3). Quantification of usability among a sufficient number of real-world end users (i.e., enrolled Geriatric Scholars) is unknown. The objective of this study was to investigate the usability of the BMD among frequent and infrequent users that had access to the BMD prior to completing their QI projects.

Methods:
Usability of the BMD was measured by administering the industry standard 10-item System Usability Scale (SUS) to Geriatric Scholars with evidence of BMD usage ( > 5 executions). The 10-item SUS was integrated into an electronic form using InfoPath and published to SharePoint. Submitted responses were collected within a secured SharePoint list and then extracted for analysis.

Results:
We identified 44 geriatric scholars with evidence of BMD usage ( > 5 executions). The 10-item SUS was completed by 28 end users (response rate = 63.6%). The mean number of dashboard executions among responders was 66.4 (95% CI 25.2 - 102.8). The usability of the BMD was deemed to be above average (SUS score: 75.2 [SD 12.5]) in comparison to the recommended standard of acceptability (SUS score: 68 [SD 12.5]). Usability satisfaction was further elevated among frequent BMD users ( ? 20 executions; SUS Score: 79.1 [SD 13.0]), but reduced among infrequent users ( < 20 executions; SUS Score: 71.3 [SD 11.0]).

Implications:
The usability of the BMD was rated above average by Geriatric Scholars, irrespective of frequency of use. Frequent users reportedly found the BMD to be highly usable. Improving user experience may improve BMD uptake. Further investigation is warranted in identifying areas for improvement among infrequent users.

Impacts:
Quantifying the usability of a production-ready dashboard among real-world end users and outside a controlled environment is important to ascertaining the true performance of the user experience. Large-scale usability measurement among real-world end users is an important baseline performance indicator that should be ascertained prior to the implementation of iterative modifications, post-production.