Mapping the health technology needs of congestive heart failure patients: user needs vs. feasibility

Abstract

In health technology projects, user-driven requirements and ideas for functionalities often pose a challenge for research and development teams. Some of these are typical for the context of research projects while others are related to implementation in healthcare settings. In research projects, such challenging issues are sometimes disregarded so that one can focus on the project scope, which, from a user point-of-view, may cause sub-optimal project results. Additionally, disregarding requirements and ideas that are important for end-users in early project stages, hinders the development of in-depth understanding of such issues, which may become a serious barrier for health technology adoption in general. To prevent these risks, we present user requirements that were especially challenging in a research project on disease management for people with congestive heart failure (CHF). By sharing examples like these, we aim to contribute to building intermediate knowledge related to health technology design in general.