Every few years, I try to improve my own product. Prompted by a sense of dissatisfaction with my clothing, I clean out and rebuild my wardrobe. I fill a trash bag with clothes to be donated, and feel accomplished as I look at my newly spacious closet. Each time I do this I’m convinced that I’ve solved the problem, only to be faced with that same problem again within a year or two. Read more

As a company that specializes in improving healthcare products and systems, Design Science often needs researchers to perform observations in the operating room (OR). My work typically involves human factors usability studies and evaluations, so I was excited to be given the chance to participate in my first surgical ethnographic timing study!While working on this project, I learned about the. Read more

As a company that is perpetually seeking to make products highly usable, it's natural that we would apply that same scrutiny to how our own human factors usability studies are conducted. For the past few years, we've been exploring one specifically onerous aspect of usability studies: the ubiquitous pen and paper interview guide. Our clients are eager to ensure that our methods of capturing data. Read more

At Design Science we take our jobs seriously. Everyday we support the development of safe and effective healthcare technology. So, what better way to celebrate AAMI's 50th anniversary than through an enthusiastic song and dance?! Have no fear! We all plan to keep our day jobs... Read more

In April, Design Science participated in the 3rd Annual Big Red Run at Ridley Creek State Park in Media, PA. The 5K event helped raise money for the Brandywine Valley Hemophilia Foundation, which uses the money to fund research towards better treatments and progression towards a cure. Nine of Design Science’s employees (Carrie Davidson, Zaheer Elly, Megan Findlay, Jennifer Galindo, Neil Mejia,. Read more

Are you a meticulous designer with a passion for the research that contributes to great design? Feel like spending your summer learning more about human factors in a company of awesome people (and the occasional dog)? Read more

As we saw in a previous post (Getting to the Root) predicting human behavior and responses can be complex. Not only is human behavior unpredictable, but each user population comes with its own set of unique challenges. In this post, we will focus on ways that a well-trained moderator can engage adolescent participants and motivate them to be responsive with their feedback.   Read more

Take me back to the Big Easy! We had a great time in NOLA at the HFES conference March 5-8, 2017. We saw some excellent presentations and enjoyed delicious New Orleans cuisine. If you missed our poster Using Data-Driven Research Techniques to Define Better Product Requirements, you can download our HFES poster here. Read more

What makes a use risk assessment good? Researcher Bryon Calawa answers that question in Design Science’s latest guest column for MedDeviceOnline. Read more

The HIMSS 2017 conference is “the year's largest and most important healthcare IT conference in the United States” and brings together executives, clinicians, IT professionals, and more for a week of networking, knowledge-sharing, and forward-thinking. Read more