Community Learning Space

The infraNET Project and 
Waterloo Institute for Health Informatics Research
at the University of Waterloo


present ...


Human Computer Interaction in Health Informatics:
From Laboratory Usability Testing to Televaluation  
of Web-based Information Systems


by

Dr. Andre Kushniruk
Associate Professor and Director, Arts Information Technology Program 
Department of Mathematics and Statistics, York University

Wednesday, June 23, 2004
3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Davis Centre, Room 1302
University of Waterloo

This seminar is of interest to Health and IT Executives, IS/IT Staff, Faculty and Students.
There is no charge for this event. However, we ask that you register to attend.
Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.

Presentation Archive 2003-2004

Advances in health informatics and the advent of e-Health promise to radically change and improve health care. In this presentation, approaches to assessing the use and usability of a number of innovative and emerging health care information systems will be discussed. The discussion will draw on examples from the evaluation of a number of health applications, ranging from computerized patient record systems to Web-based clinical guidelines. The approaches described will be considered along a continuum ranging from laboratory-based usability testing to naturalistic study of system use. An integrated framework will be discussed for conducting evaluations of information systems, which borrows from advances in a number of fields, including cognitive, information and computer science, as well as the emerging field of usability engineering. Application of video analysis for assessing human-computer interaction in health care settings will be illustrated along with recent work in developing methods for the televaluation of Web-based information resources. The focus of the research is on improving our understanding of the cognitive processes involved in using advanced technology in order to improve system usability and enhance patient and health care workers understanding and decision-making. Implications will be discussed in the context of the iterative development of improved systems. Ongoing extension of the research approach to the evaluation of usability of Web-based information resources will also be discussed.

Andres Kushniruk is Associate Professor and Director of the Information Technology Program in the Faculty of Arts at York University. He has expertise in the areas of health informatics, system evaluation and human-computer interaction in health care. He has written numerous papers on topics related to improving the usability of health care information systems and has worked extensively in the areas of medical informatics and usability engineering. His development of methods for conducting video analysis of computer users has been applied worldwide and he is currently extending his research to the remote study of system usability. He has experience consulting on a variety of research projects, including work with the World Bank in developing novel methods for the analysis of complex decision making and continued work with hospitals throughout Canada and the United States in the development of innovative information systems. Dr. Kushniruk has taught at a number of universities in Canada. He holds undergraduate degrees in Psychology and Biology, as well as graduate degrees in Computer Science and Cognitive Psychology. For the past ten years he has worked on health informatics related projects with a number of universities including the University of Toronto, McGill s Centre for Medical Education, the Departments of Medical Informatics and Computer Science, Columbia University and Mt. Sinai Medical School in New York. Prior to his academic career, Dr. Kushniruk worked in industry developing knowledge-based systems and novel applications of information technology.

For more information

Shirley Fenton
Managing Director, WIHIR
The infraNET Project
Computer Systems Group, University of Waterloo
(519) 888-4074

Seminar Hosts

This seminar is hosted by the Waterloo Institute for Health Informatics Research (WIHIR) and The infraNET Project, University of Waterloo.

The infraNET Project, initiated by the University of Waterloo in 1996, is a partnership to advance Web and Internet technologies. Its founding partners are: LivePage (now part of Siebel), MKS, Open Text, RIM, Sybase (Waterloo) and Waterloo Maple.

We also gratefully acknowledge the assistance of the Institute for Computer Research, University of Waterloo.