Design and testing booking application for private doctors’ practices to support disaster management

Abstract

During the pandemic or natural disaster, people will be dispersed and locked down in their own homes or crisis centres. During these times, people are still in need of access to healthcare. While general healthcare would be provided by the government during these times, certain people within the population will need access to specialised doctors, especially children, the elderly and people who have prior or long-term diseases. During a disaster, people may not have access to these services. Therefore, a simple technology that lets them book an appointment with these specialised doctors will be designed in this research. This booking application, will be able to back up the general healthcare when it is overwhelmed, especially during a disaster. This research was carried out using qualitative research. The data collection was conducted using interview and observation. These primary data are then coded according to the general themes. The data is then used to create a usable design for the booking application prototype, using User-Centred Design as its method. After the prototype was created successfully, it was then tested for its usability with its potential users. 6 people from 3 user groups agreed to be respondents for the usability testing. Using think aloud protocols, it was found that on average 4 out of 6 people found the prototype usable and suitable for their jobs.