Effects of Visualization Tools on Cardiac Telephone Consultation Processes

Abstract

An Ecological Interface Design approach was employed to analyze and extract information for a Decision Support System (DSS) for cardiac nurses' telephone consultation processes. Information visualization techniques were explored to overcome the complexity of the information space. Three visualization prototypes, Bar, Polar, and Clock Symptom Maps, were designed based on the Work Domain Analysis and the identified strategies from a Cognitive Work Analysis. An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of these visualization tools using low-fidelity prototypes. Static images of patient symptom maps were used to mimic the final information space. Positive effects of the visualization tools were observed compared to a text list of presented problems, especially when the decision problems were more complex. The results are encouraging with regards to the integration of graphical symptom maps into DSSs.

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