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Background Smart glasses have been gaining momentum as a novel technology because of their advantages in enabling hands-free operation and see-what-I-see remote consultation. Researchers have primarily evaluated this technology in hospital settings; however, limited research has investigated its application in prehospital operations. Objective The aim of this study is to understand the potential of smart glasses to support the work practices of prehospital providers, such as emergency medical services (EMS) personnel. Methods We conducted semistructured interviews with 13 EMS providers recruited from 4 hospital-based EMS agencies in an urban area in the east coast region of the United States. The interview questions covered EMS workflow, challenges encountered, technology needs, and users’ perceptions of smart glasses in supporting daily EMS work. During the interviews, we demonstrated a system prototype to elicit more accurate and comprehensive insights regarding smart glasses. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using the open coding technique. Results We identified four potential application areas for smart glasses in EMS: enhancing teleconsultation between distributed prehospital and hospital providers, semiautomating patient data collection and documentation in real time, supporting decision-making and situation awareness, and augmenting quality assurance and training. Compared with the built-in touch pad, voice commands and hand gestures were indicated as the most preferred and suitable interaction mechanisms. EMS providers expressed positive attitudes toward using smart glasses during prehospital encounters. However, several potential barriers and user concerns need to be considered and addressed before implementing and deploying smart glasses in EMS practice. They are related to hardware limitations, human factors, reliability, workflow, interoperability, and privacy. Conclusions Smart glasses can be a suitable technological means for supporting EMS work. We conclude this paper by discussing several design considerations for realizing the full potential of this hands-free technology.
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Enhancing prehospital decision-making: exploring user needs and design considerations for clinical decision support systems
Abstract BackgroundIn prehospital emergency care, providers face significant challenges in making informed decisions due to factors such as limited cognitive support, high-stress environments, and lack of experience with certain patient conditions. Effective Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSS) have great potential to alleviate these challenges. However, such systems have not yet been widely adopted in real-world practice and have been found to cause workflow disruptions and usability issues. Therefore, it is critical to investigate how to design CDSS that meet the needs of prehospital providers while accounting for the unique characteristics of prehospital workflows. MethodsWe conducted semi-structured interviews with 20 prehospital providers recruited from four Emergency Medical Services (EMS) agencies in an urban area in the northeastern U.S. The interviews focused on the decision-making challenges faced by prehospital providers, their technological needs for decision support, and key considerations for the design and implementation of a CDSS that can seamlessly integrate into prehospital care workflows. The data were analyzed using content analysis to identify common themes. ResultsOur qualitative study identified several challenges in prehospital decision-making, including limited access to diagnostic tools, insufficient experience with certain critical patient conditions, and a lack of cognitive support. Participants highlighted several desired features to make CDSS more effective in the dynamic, hands-busy, and cognitively demanding prehospital context, such as automatic prompts for possible patient conditions and treatment options, alerts for critical patient safety events, AI-powered medication identification, and easy retrieval of protocols using hands-free methods (e.g., voice commands). Key considerations for successful CDSS adoption included balancing the frequency and urgency of alerts to reduce alarm fatigue and workflow disruptions, facilitating real-time data collection and documentation to enable decision generation, and ensuring trust and accountability while preventing over-reliance when using CDSS. ConclusionThis study provides empirical insights into the challenges and user needs in prehospital decision-making and offers practical and system design implications for addressing these issues.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2237097
- PAR ID:
- 10566898
- Publisher / Repository:
- Springer Science + Business Media
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making
- Volume:
- 25
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 1472-6947
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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