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Ergo4workers: Usability Testing of the Second Prototype of an App for the Ergonomic Assessment of Healthcare Professionals

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Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health V

Part of the book series: Studies in Systems, Decision and Control ((SSDC,volume 492))

Abstract

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSD) result from continuous exposure to risk factors associated with the workplace. They affect millions of workers worldwide, including those in the healthcare sector. One of Ergonomics’ concerns is fitting job demands to workers’ capabilities, namely by providing risk assessment methods as tools to support the implementation of preventive strategies for WRMSD. Currently, advanced wearable technology is being used to gather objective exposure measurements in a work context. Ergo4workers (E4W) is a system that includes a smartphone app to integrate data from wearable sensors. It was developed following the User-Centered Design (UCD) iterative process. This approach was adopted to design a useful and usable app that assesses healthcare professionals during their daily activities, namely by providing feedback on the working postures. This paper describes the design cycle’s second iteration. The second prototype was designed according to user requirements, building on an initial prototype’s findings, and was tested by a potential representative user using the Cognitive Walkthrough method. Test results evidenced adequate usability, and the healthcare professional expressed satisfaction regarding the interaction with the app. Furthermore, the new findings are being used to refine the design solution, to be implemented and evaluated in a third UCD cycle iteration.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT-MCTES) for its financial support via the project UIDP/00667/2020 and UIDB/00667/2020 (UNIDEMI).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. UNIDEMI, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, 2829-516, Caparica, Portugal

    Inês Sabino, Maria do Carmo Fernandes, Isabel L. Nunes & Ana Teresa Gabriel

  2. Laboratório Associado de Sistemas Inteligentes, LASI, 4800-058, Guimarães, Portugal

    Inês Sabino, Maria do Carmo Fernandes, Isabel L. Nunes & Ana Teresa Gabriel

  3. Área de Medicina Física e Reabilitação, Hospital Curry Cabral, Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Central, Caparica, Portugal

    Bruno Mendes, Carlos Caldeira & Nidia Grazina

  4. Laboratory for Instrumentation, Biomechanical Engineering and Radiation Physics, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, 2829-516, Caparica, Portugal

    Cátia Cepeda, Cláudia Quaresma & Hugo Gamboa

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  1. Inês Sabino
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  2. Maria do Carmo Fernandes
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  3. Bruno Mendes
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  4. Carlos Caldeira
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  7. Cláudia Quaresma
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  8. Hugo Gamboa
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  9. Isabel L. Nunes
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  10. Ana Teresa Gabriel
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ana Teresa Gabriel .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Production and Systems, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Pedro M. Arezes

  2. Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal

    Rui B. Melo

  3. Department of Production and Systems, School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Paula Carneiro

  4. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Jacqueline Castelo Branco

  5. School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Ana Colim

  6. Department of Production and Systems School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Nélson Costa

  7. School of Engineering, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal

    Susana Costa

  8. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Joana Duarte

  9. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Joana C. Guedes

  10. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    Gonçalo Perestrelo

  11. Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    J. Santos Baptista

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Sabino, I. et al. (2024). Ergo4workers: Usability Testing of the Second Prototype of an App for the Ergonomic Assessment of Healthcare Professionals. In: Arezes, P.M., et al. Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health V. Studies in Systems, Decision and Control, vol 492. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38277-2_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38277-2_8

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-38277-2

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