The overall goal of this project is to explore new ways for designing devices for pediatric diagnosis and therapy. For many diagnostic procedures and treatments, such as in asthma and diabetes, the child's level of cooperation and motivation in using medical devices is critical to diagnostic or therapeutic success. There is need, therefore, for the systematic development of user-interfaces (the look, feel, and behavior) of medical devices used by children: i.e., the design of pediatric user-interfaces. This project will develop new types of pediatric user-interfaces based upon the natural attraction that toys have for children. In these toy-like interfaces to medical devices, children will engage in the kinds of physical, cognitive, and intellectual activities that are customarily observed in children playing with toys. Three prototype diagnostic and therapeutic devices, incorporating different approaches to pediatric user-interface design, will be constructed, targeting a wide range of pediatric diseases, from pulmonary disease to neuromuscular disease. The prototypes will include interfaces based upon skill games, narratives, and pictures. Prototype toys (interfaces) will be constructed for: (1) measuring grip strength, for children with neuromuscular diseases; (2) motivating children to perform nebulizer treatments for asthma; and (3) assisting children in managing sequences of tasks related to their therapy, or for children with brain injury or attention-deficit disorder. This work will be carried out in preparation for later clinical testing of these interfaces, to determine which approaches are most successful in sustaining interest, motivation, and compliance. In developing these new pediatric user-interfaces a systematic engineering design process will be adopted, using many of the best practices now employed in product design, including rapid prototyping, modular design, and user-centered design.
