The development of ‘Delta’ – an online decision aid for pediatric oncology clinical trials
Published on the 09 May 2018
Eden Robertson, PhD candidate at the Behavioural Sciences Unit, has led the development of a decision aid for pediatric oncology clinical trial enrolment, called ‘Delta’.
Ms Robertson has recently published the development process of Delta and user testing results in JMIR Research Protocols.
The main of aim of Delta is to improve clinical trial knowledge and facilitate treatment discussions and shared decision making between families and healthcare professionals. Delta incorporates general content about clinical trials (eg, what are clinical trials, how do clinical trials work), the specific clinical trial information sheet, and a unique decision-making exercise.
The development of Delta was supported by a steering committee, and followed the principles of Agile. Agile focuses on collaborations between developers and stakeholders, flexible methodology, and the ability to respond quickly to change through multiple iterations. Using Agile allowed for the development of a high-quality and high-value project within the constraints of cost, schedule, and scope.
To assess the usability of Delta, we incorporated eye-tracking analyses to determine where participants’ gaze lingered, their length of gaze, and readability (ie, scanning, reading, or rereading of content). Seven parents and six healthcare professionals participated in user testing.
User testing revealed that, overall, both HCPs and parents found Delta to be acceptable and useful.
“After this tool, we would really start talking with each other. The exercise is great—it becomes a tool at that point for more people to really engage.” [Mother of a 13-year-old boy with osteosarcoma]
One particularly interesting finding was that few participants saw the side panel for instructions on how to use the decision-making exercise. This indicates that the instructions needed to be more obvious.
You can read more about the Delta study here. You can also access this full manuscript here.
DOI: 10.2196/resprot.9258
