Rheumatic? A diagnostic decision support tool for individuals suspecting rheumatic diseases: Mixed-methods usability and acceptability study.

IF 2.1 Q3 RHEUMATOLOGY
Stefan Jakobi, Katharina Boy, Magali Wagner, Susann May, Alp Temiz, Anna-Maria Liphardt, Elizabeth Araujo, Loreto Carmona, Rachel Knevel, Georg Schett, Johannes Knitza, Felix Muehlensiepen, Harriet Morf
{"title":"Rheumatic? A diagnostic decision support tool for individuals suspecting rheumatic diseases: Mixed-methods usability and acceptability study.","authors":"Stefan Jakobi, Katharina Boy, Magali Wagner, Susann May, Alp Temiz, Anna-Maria Liphardt, Elizabeth Araujo, Loreto Carmona, Rachel Knevel, Georg Schett, Johannes Knitza, Felix Muehlensiepen, Harriet Morf","doi":"10.1186/s41927-025-00507-w","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The early diagnosis of inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRDs) is of paramount importance in order to prevent irreversible damage to joints and to optimize treatment outcomes. Nevertheless, conventional care pathways frequently entail diagnostic delays spanning several months. Symptom checkers (SCs) have the potential to provide a solution by offering validated symptom assessments, improving triage systems and expediting diagnostic evaluations. The objective of this mixed-methods study is to assess the usability and acceptability of the SC Rheumatic? among individuals with suspected rheumatic diseases.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A total of 105 individuals with suspected IRDs who were newly presenting at an outpatient rheumatology clinic completed the Rheumatic? symptom checker and an evaluation questionnaire. The questionnaire comprised the System Usability Scale (SUS) and Net Promoter Score (NPS). Additionally, 14 participants were interviewed by telephone in order to gain further insights through the qualitative method.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The Rheumatic? symptom checker received a \"good\" usability score, with an average SUS of 78 ± 16 (range 0-100). Younger participants reported significantly higher usability scores (p < 0.03). However, the NPS was - 15 (range - 100 to 100), indicating lower acceptability. Qualitative data supported the positive usability ratings but emphasized the need for enhancements to increase user engagement and perceived value, such as a current perceived lack of immediate benefit for many users. Their experience varied in terms of impact, with some patients suggesting an increased awareness of their symptoms while others did not notice any difference.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Rheumatic? demonstrates good usability, particularly among younger users. Interviews revealed valuable suggestions for improvements, which could enhance overall acceptability and user satisfaction. Implementing Rheumatic? could lead to more efficient triage, potentially reducing diagnostic delays and an optimized allocation of resources. Future iterations should prioritize implementation strategies to maximize user impact and benefit.</p><p><strong>Clinical trial number: </strong>Not applicable.</p>","PeriodicalId":9150,"journal":{"name":"BMC Rheumatology","volume":"9 1","pages":"59"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1000,"publicationDate":"2025-05-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12101040/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"BMC Rheumatology","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s41927-025-00507-w","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"RHEUMATOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background: The early diagnosis of inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRDs) is of paramount importance in order to prevent irreversible damage to joints and to optimize treatment outcomes. Nevertheless, conventional care pathways frequently entail diagnostic delays spanning several months. Symptom checkers (SCs) have the potential to provide a solution by offering validated symptom assessments, improving triage systems and expediting diagnostic evaluations. The objective of this mixed-methods study is to assess the usability and acceptability of the SC Rheumatic? among individuals with suspected rheumatic diseases.

Methods: A total of 105 individuals with suspected IRDs who were newly presenting at an outpatient rheumatology clinic completed the Rheumatic? symptom checker and an evaluation questionnaire. The questionnaire comprised the System Usability Scale (SUS) and Net Promoter Score (NPS). Additionally, 14 participants were interviewed by telephone in order to gain further insights through the qualitative method.

Results: The Rheumatic? symptom checker received a "good" usability score, with an average SUS of 78 ± 16 (range 0-100). Younger participants reported significantly higher usability scores (p < 0.03). However, the NPS was - 15 (range - 100 to 100), indicating lower acceptability. Qualitative data supported the positive usability ratings but emphasized the need for enhancements to increase user engagement and perceived value, such as a current perceived lack of immediate benefit for many users. Their experience varied in terms of impact, with some patients suggesting an increased awareness of their symptoms while others did not notice any difference.

Conclusion: Rheumatic? demonstrates good usability, particularly among younger users. Interviews revealed valuable suggestions for improvements, which could enhance overall acceptability and user satisfaction. Implementing Rheumatic? could lead to more efficient triage, potentially reducing diagnostic delays and an optimized allocation of resources. Future iterations should prioritize implementation strategies to maximize user impact and benefit.

Clinical trial number: Not applicable.

风湿?一个诊断决策支持工具的个人怀疑风湿病:混合方法的可用性和可接受性研究。
背景:炎性风湿病(IRDs)的早期诊断对于预防关节不可逆损伤和优化治疗效果至关重要。然而,传统的护理途径往往导致诊断延误数月。症状检查器(SCs)有可能通过提供有效的症状评估、改进分诊系统和加快诊断评估来提供解决方案。这项混合方法研究的目的是评估SC风湿病?在疑似风湿病患者中。方法:105例在风湿病门诊新就诊的疑似ird患者完成了风湿病?症状检查器和评估问卷。问卷由系统可用性量表(SUS)和净推荐值(NPS)组成。此外,为了通过定性方法获得进一步的见解,对14名参与者进行了电话访谈。结果:风湿病?症状检查器的可用性得分为“良好”,平均SUS为78±16(范围0-100)。年轻的参与者报告了更高的可用性得分(p结论:风湿病?展示良好的可用性,特别是在年轻用户中。访谈揭示了有价值的改进建议,这些建议可以提高整体的可接受性和用户满意度。实现风湿?可能导致更有效的分类,潜在地减少诊断延误和优化资源分配。未来的迭代应该优先考虑实现策略,以最大化用户影响和收益。临床试验号:不适用。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
求助全文
约1分钟内获得全文 求助全文
来源期刊
BMC Rheumatology
BMC Rheumatology Medicine-Rheumatology
CiteScore
3.80
自引率
0.00%
发文量
73
审稿时长
15 weeks
×
引用
GB/T 7714-2015
复制
MLA
复制
APA
复制
导出至
BibTeX EndNote RefMan NoteFirst NoteExpress
×
提示
您的信息不完整,为了账户安全,请先补充。
现在去补充
×
提示
您因"违规操作"
具体请查看互助需知
我知道了
×
提示
确定
请完成安全验证×
copy
已复制链接
快去分享给好友吧!
我知道了
右上角分享
点击右上角分享
0
联系我们:info@booksci.cn Book学术提供免费学术资源搜索服务,方便国内外学者检索中英文文献。致力于提供最便捷和优质的服务体验。 Copyright © 2023 布克学术 All rights reserved.
京ICP备2023020795号-1
ghs 京公网安备 11010802042870号
Book学术文献互助
Book学术文献互助群
群 号:481959085
Book学术官方微信