Health IT Usability Evaluation Scale (Health ITUES)

This technology is a customizable scale for assessing IT usability in healthcare settings.

Unmet Need: Method for assessing health information technology usability

Usability is evaluated through the interaction of user, system, and task in a particular environment, and can be a major limitation to health information technology (IT) adoption. Technical features of health IT interact with the social aspects of healthcare work, and any changes to that interaction impact the usability of the tool. Although there are validation tools available, there is commonly a misalignment between study needs and assessed concepts, which results in unstandardized item addition, modification or deletion. There is a need for a customizable evaluation tool to determine health IT usability, in order to facilitate optimal system development.

The Technology: Customizable evaluation tool for determining IT usability in healthcare

This technology is a customizable, 20-item questionnaire for determining perceived health IT usability. The tool consists of various components associated with levels of expectation, capturing user-system interaction and representing higher expectations of system impact. For example, the assessment addresses questions related to quality of work life, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user control. This technology can facilitate improved user-system interactions in healthcare settings, potentially improving system development and patient care.

This technology was used by nurses to rate the usability of a web-based communication system for scheduling nursing staff, and the results indicated internal consistency reliability, with demonstrated construct and predictive validity.

Applications:

• Assessment tool for IT usability in a healthcare setting
• Regularly scheduled assessment of modifications or updates in healthcare IT
• Facilitating innovative system development in healthcare settings
• Evaluation tool to assist with training healthcare workers for IT proficiency

Advantages:

• Standardizable to facilitate the aggregation of findings across studies
• Customizable at the item level
• Considers the healthcare worker’s varying levels of expected IT support for a given task
• Facilitates improved interactions between the user and system

Lead Inventor:

Suzanne B. Bakken, Ph.D., R.N., F.A.A.N., F.A.C.M.I.

Related Publications:

• Yen PY, Sousa KH, Bakken S. “Examining construct and predictive validity of the Health-IT Usability Evaluation Scale: confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling results” J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2014 Oct; 21(e2): e241-8.

• Yen PY, Wantland D, Bakken S. “Development of a customizable health IT usability evaluation scale” AMIA Annu Symp Proc. 2010 Nov 13; 2010: 917-21.

Tech Ventures Reference:

• IR CU20177

• Licensing Contact: Joan Martinez