Developing and Testing the Usability of a Novel Child Abuse Clinical Decision Support System: Mixed Methods Study

Abstract

Background Despite the impact of physical abuse on children, it is often underdiagnosed, especially among children evaluated in emergency departments (EDs). Electronic clinical decision support (CDS) can improve the recognition of child physical abuse. Objective We aimed to develop and test the usability of a natural language processing–based child abuse CDS system, known as the Child Abuse Clinical Decision Support (CA-CDS), to alert ED clinicians about high-risk injuries suggestive of abuse in infants’ charts. Methods Informed by available evidence, a multidisciplinary team, including an expert in user design, developed the CA-CDS prototype that provided evidence-based recommendations for the evaluation and management of suspected child abuse when triggered by documentation of a high-risk injury. Content was customized for medical versus nursing providers and initial versus subsequent exposure to the alert. To assess the usability of and refine the CA-CDS, we interviewed 24 clinicians from 4 EDs about their interactions with the prototype. Interview transcripts were coded and analyzed using conventional content analysis. Results Overall, 5 main categories of themes emerged from the study. CA-CDS benefits included providing an extra layer of protection, providing evidence-based recommendations, and alerting the entire clinical ED team. The user-centered, workflow-compatible design included soft-stop alert configuration, editable and automatic documentation, and attention-grabbing formatting. Recommendations for improvement included consolidating content, clearer design elements, and adding a hyperlink with additional resources. Barriers to future implementation included alert fatigue, hesitancy to change, and concerns regarding documentation. Facilitators of future implementation included stakeholder buy-in, provider education, and sharing the test characteristics. On the basis of user feedback, iterative modifications were made to the prototype. Conclusions With its user-centered design and evidence-based content, the CA-CDS can aid providers in the real-time recognition and evaluation of infant physical abuse and has the potential to reduce the number of missed cases.