JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

There are more than 18 million cancer survivors living in the United States. The effect of cancer and its treatment can cause cognitive, psychological, physical, and social consequences, many of which survivors can find incredibly disabling. Posttreatment support is often unavailable or underutilized, especially for survivors living with disabilities. This leaves them to deal with new obstacles and struggles on their own, oftentimes feeling lost during this transition. Mobile health (mHealth) interventions have been shown to effectively aid cancer survivors in dealing with many of the after effects of cancer and its treatments, and holds great potential for survivors living with disabilities. We developed a prototype for WeCanManage, an mHealth-delivered self-management intervention to empower cancer survivors living with disabilities through problem-solving, mindfulness, and self-advocacy training.

Objective:

Our study conducted a heuristic evaluation of the WeCanManage high fidelity prototype and evaluated its usability amongst cancer survivors with known disabilities.

Methods:

We evaluated the prototype using Nielson’s 10 principles of heuristic evaluation with 22 Human-Computer Interaction university students. Based on the heuristic evaluation findings, we modified the prototype and conducted usability testing on 10 cancer survivors with a variety of known disabilities, examining effectiveness, efficiency, usability, and satisfaction, including a completion of the modified System Usability Scale (SUS).

Results:

The findings from the heuristic evaluation were mostly favorable, highlighting the need for a help guide, addressing accessibility concerns, and enhancing the navigation experience. After usability testing, the average SUS score was 81, indicating a good-excellent design. The participants in the usability testing sample expressed positive reactions towards the app's design, educational content and videos, and the available means of connecting with others. They identified areas for improvement, such as improving accessibility, simplifying navigation within the community forums, and providing a more convenient method to access the help guide.

Conclusions:

Overall, usability testing showed positive results for the design of WeCanManage. The course content and features helped participants feel heard, understood, and less alone.