Development of a Digital Health Intervention for the Secondary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease (INTERCEPT): Co-Design and Usability Testing Study

Gibson, Irene; Neubeck, Lis; Corcoran, Marissa; Morland, Chris; Donovan, Steve; Jones, Jennifer; Costello, Caroline; Hynes, Lisa; Harris, Aisling; Harrahill, Mary; Lillis, Mary; Atrey, Alison; Ski, Chantal F.; Savickas, Vilius; Byrne, Molly; Murphy, Andrew W; McEvoy, John William; Wood, David; Jennings, Catriona

Abstract

Background: Secondary prevention is an important strategy to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD), a leading cause of death worldwide. Despite the growing evidence for the effectiveness of digital health interventions (DHIs) for the secondary prevention of CVD, the majority are designed with minimal input from target end users, resulting in poor uptake and usage.

Objective: This study aimed to optimize the acceptance and effectiveness of a DHI for the secondary prevention of CVD through co-design, integrating end users’ perspectives throughout.

Methods: A theory-driven, person-based approach using co-design was adopted for the development of the DHI, known as INTERCEPT. This involved a 4-phase iterative process using online workshops. In phase 1, a stakeholder team of health care professionals, software developers, and public and patient involvement members was established. Phase 2 involved identification of the guiding principles, content, and design features of the DHI. In phase 3, DHI prototypes were reviewed for clarity of language, ease of navigation, and functionality. To anticipate and interpret DHI usage, phase 4 involved usability testing with participants who had a recent cardiac event (<2 years). To assess the potential impact of usability testing, the System Usability Scale was administered before and after testing. The GUIDED (Guidance for Reporting Intervention Development Studies in Health Research) checklist was used to report the development process.

Results: Five key design principles were identified: simplicity and ease of use, behavioral change through goal setting and self-monitoring, personalization, system credibility, and social support. Usability testing resulted in 64 recommendations for the app, of which 51 were implemented. Improvements in System Usability Scale scores were observed when comparing the results before and after implementing the recommendations (61 vs 83; P=.02).

Conclusions: Combining behavior change theory with a person-based, co-design approach facilitated the development of a DHI for the secondary prevention of CVD that optimized responsiveness to end users’ needs and preferences, thereby potentially improving future engagement.

Citation

Gibson, I., Neubeck, L., Corcoran, M., Morland, C., Donovan, S., Jones, J., Costello, C., Hynes, L., Harris, A., Harrahill, M., Lillis, M., Atrey, A., Ski, C. F., Savickas, V., Byrne, M., Murphy, A. W., McEvoy, J. W., Wood, D., & Jennings, C. (2024). Development of a Digital Health Intervention for the Secondary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease (INTERCEPT): Co-Design and Usability Testing Study. JMIR Human Factors, 11, Article e63707. https://doi.org/10.2196/63707

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 26, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Oct 23, 2024
• Publication Date: 2024
• Deposit Date: Nov 25, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 25, 2024
• Journal: JMIR Human Factors
• Print ISSN: 2292-9495
• Publisher: JMIR Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 11
• Article Number: e63707
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.2196/63707
• Keywords: cardiovascular disease; secondary prevention; digital health; intervention development; co-design; usability testing; mobile health; usability; design; conline workshop; social support ; behavioral change; self-monitoring