Hidden in plain sight: encouraging asthma inhaler usage in public

Master thesis (2020)

Authors

R. Motie Industrial Design Engineering

Contributors

I.A. Ruiter Applied Ergonomics and Design - IDE (mentor)
R.J.H.G. van Heur Applied Ergonomics and Design - IDE (graduation committee member)
Faculty
Industrial Design Engineering, Industrial Design Engineering
Copyright: © 2020 Rawien Motie
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Published Date

18-08-2020

Language

English

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Faculty

Industrial Design Engineering

Abstract

In the Netherlands an estimated amount of 1.75 million people are suffering from asthma, from which an estimated amount of 300,000 are children. Even though the treatment of asthma has come a long way, nonadherence in asthma patients regarding their treatment remains high. This nonadherence is in part linked to the visual appearance of asthma inhaler devices and the ease of incorrectly interacting with these devices. The combination of using a metered dose inhaler (MDI) with a (valved) spacer chamber significantly decreases the likelihood of device interaction issues, but it worsens the visual appearance of the device, making it the least popular asthma inhaler device and also the least likely to be used in public. A concept has been developed in order to make the combination of an MDI + spacer chamber more appealing to use amongst younger asthma patients (children), especially in public. This concept consists of a housing which can hold and disguise an MDI + spacer chamber whilst providing an outwardly appearance of a sports water bottle. Interaction with this concept also provides an outwardly appearance as a person who is drinking from a sports water bottle, as opposed to that of a patient who is inhaling from a medical device. This concept aims to provide the advantages of an MDI + spacer chamber whilst simultaneously decreasing factors of embarrassment and/or reluctance to use such a device in public. Finally a usability study and a user experience (UX) have been conducted in order to evaluate whether the developed concept performs as intended.