Improving the User Interface and Adoption of Online Personal Health Records

Abstract

In winter 2008/2009, we conducted an independent comparative research study of two existing online Personal Health Record (PHR) applications: Google Health and Microsoft HealthVault. The goals of the study were to identify areas associated with the most errors or missteps and to determine which functions and features were most preferred by potential users. Thirty participants completed a set of tasks using each PHR application and provided qualitative feedback and preference data on five dimensions: usability, utility, security, privacy, and trust. Overall, participants navigated more efficiently and entered data more quickly using Google Health. Consequently, they indicated that they found Google Health more usable than Microsoft HealthVault. Participants also appreciated the fact that Google Health utilized more familiar medical terminology and provided a persistent health information profile summary. Although both PHR systems contain useful features, including the ability to share medical information with a physician, we found that Google Health had a slight edge in perceived overall utility because of important drug interaction information. Finally, in terms of security, privacy and trust, there was a slight preference for Microsoft HealthVault because of its strong brand presence, professional look-and-feel, and more friendly privacy and security language.