Advancing nursing participation in user-centred design

Background What is the role of nursing in the digital health transformation of the 21st century? The answer to this critical question may rely on how prepared nursing is to enter into design processes associated with this evolution. Aims The purpose of this paper is to introduce foundational terminology and tools to support increased nursing participation in user-centred design. Situated within a six-step design process, this includes a new analytic framework combining the disciplinary expertise of computer science with the nursing methodology Interpretive Description. Methods The analytic framework and recommended research process were developed over the course of two projects each employing a similar collaborative mixed-methods design. Primary methodological drivers were drawn from the software development life-cycle and Interpretive Description in these digital health intervention studies. Results Using aspects of software development practice, an analytic framework was conceived as part of an interdisciplinary research process allowing nurses to integrate their disciplinary expertise in user-centred digital design. The framework allows nurses to parse collected data into a robust set of functional and non-functional requirements for software developers while still engaging in a fulsome interpretive analysis. Conclusion There is a need for nursing to occupy a more significant role in the advancement of technology innovation in healthcare. However, a lack of familiarity with design-thinking and associated practical experience impedes nursing voices in this area. Tools and processes are introduced to enhance an existing nursing methodology as a means to extend our disciplinary design capacity.