Designing a TB diagnostic for real-world use
Designing a molecular TB diagnostic around real users, workflows, and lower-resource health settings.
The NAATOS system: sample preparation module, test module, and consumables. Image: Global Health Labs.
The challenge
A promising molecular TB diagnostic needed to work not only technically, but for the health workers, workflows, and lower-resource settings where it would be used.
Role
HIA worked with the product team to understand how the diagnostic would be used in real clinical settings and identify design and workflow problems before wider implementation, as user research and implementation science partner on the nPOC-BB and NAATOS diagnostic systems.
What we did
HIA brought the perspective of intended users and implementation settings into product development, using user research and implementation science to identify usability, workflow, and implementation considerations that could affect real-world use. Working with Global Health Labs and Market Access Africa, the team ran moderated usability interviews with more than 40 stakeholders across 13 primary health care facilities in Kenya and South Africa, observing health workers carry out the testing workflow task by task.
What resulted
Testing identified specific usability failures, including difficulty locating the sample module lid and inserting the sample tube, and produced design recommendations spanning the interface, notifications, workflow, and ergonomics. The findings are published in the project’s public design documentation.