Chronic diseases, such as diabetes, heart conditions or epilepsy, represent a significant and increasing health problem globally. While some of these diseases can lead to a seizure, providing first aid is very important. As the amount of chronic diseases seem to be infinite, first responders can’t be prepared for all of them when a seizure takes place. This is where a technological solution might come in.
This research project aims to come up with research findings leading to a digital / hardware solution for a certain type of disease using a user-centered approach.
My personal motivation lies in the special context of usage. During a seizure event, immediate actions are required, every minute and every second counts. As chronic diseases are becoming a growing societal challenge, first-aid has high relevance for affected persons and their relatives. In conducting research and coming up with a design solution I hope that I can make a contribution to this topic.
Research questions and expected challenges
Since the scope of my research topic is still widespread, the following questions could be addressed:
- How might we support first aid actions through technology? Where is a technical solution necessary?
- How might we prepare first responders for first aid incidents? Is a preparation needed if technology assists users?
- What challenges, needs and expectations are first responders confronted with?
- How must the interface / interaction be equipped for a specific incident?
- When do medical professionals need to take over?
In the course of research, I expect challenges that need to be overcome:
- The chosen topic could not provide room for innovation / design solutions due to technological or legal restrictions.
- There might already be many solutions exisiting with no further necessity for innovation.
- Recent solutions for different diseases do not differ in their requirements.
- Appropriate medical and health knowledge is needed to dive into this topic.
Relevance and approaches for the design fields
User requirements and context of usage
Beforehand user needs and situational circumstances need to be researched and analyzed for an appropriate foundation.
User-centered design
Due to the urgency of the situation, the interaction between the affected persons and the first responders must be seamless and user-centered.
Effective communication
Design allows to form communication to be effective and efficient, possibly satisfying. This makes a difference in the event of an emergency or when preparing first responders.
Process design
Since interaction design is not only about designing a virtual or physical product, I also consider process design to benefit existing procedures in first aid, healthcare or education.
Education
Interaction design has the potential to educate people for first aid or chronic diseases in advance through technological possibilities, visualization and storytelling.
Existing solutions
There are already some technological solutions existing with different purposes and use of technology:
PulsePoint Respond (Mobile App)
PulsePoint Respond is a 911-connected app that can instantly notify you of emergencies in your community and request your help when CPR is needed nearby.
PulsePoint helps build an informed and engaged community that drives a „culture of action,“ a key strategy to strengthen the chain of survival for victims of cardiac arrest.
GALE (Smart First Aid Kit)
Apple Watch (Emergency call)
Fall detection on the Apple Watch can connect people with emergency services if a serious fall is detected.
4 Help VR (Virtual reality first aid training)
The 4 Help VR program is primarily about gaining practical skills. Due to the carefully selected script, the combination of advanced technology and our proprietary sensor mounted in the phantom, the participant experiences saving the life of the injured person. There are three scenarios available, that form a complete training of 45 minutes.
Next steps
In the next research period the focus will be on the following steps:
- Maintain diverging research: On the one hand this contains further research about chronic diseases, on the other hand first aid procedures need to be investigated. Both areas have to be matched.
- Trying to find a first higher-level scope (converging): A decision what type of disease I want to focus on and a field of application has to be made. In doing so I specifically want to pay attention to gaps / problems that potentially have to be solved from a user’s perspective.
Relevant institutions
- Österreichisches Rotes Kreuz: https://www.roteskreuz.at/ich-will-helfen/erste-hilfe
- Österreichische Gesundheitskasse: https://www.gesundheitskasse.at/cdscontent/?contentid=10007.880
- Austrian Institute of Technology: https://www.ait.ac.at/en/research-topics/biosignal-processing/seizure-detection/
- 4 Help VR: https://4helpvr.com/en/4-help-vr-innovation-in-first-aid-training/
