A medical examination couch is a primary piece of equipment in the health care
delivery system. Unfortunately, the current design of examination couches used
by Australian general and nursing practitioners is inadequate. Incompatibility of
the couches with physical (anthropometric) dimensions and a majority of
medical procedures contribute to risks of Cumulative Trauma Disorders (CTDs)
or musculoskeletal problems among practitioner-users. The inappropriate
height, width and gynaecological attachments of the existing couches also
cause patient discomfort.
This research aimed to develop a new examination couch design in order to
improve practitioners' effectiveness, efficiency, health and safety while
enhancing patient comfort. Ergonomics and user inclusivity were implemented
in the vital stages of the couch development process. Practitioner and patient
surveys, reviews of patient positions, medical procedures and equipment,
Hierarchical Task Analysis (HTA) and an ergonomic analysis of couches in the
Australian market were conducted to develop design criteria. The design
criteria development demonstrated that adjustable height, head, body and foot
sections were the major features, and adjustable gynaecological footpads and
instrument placement (drawers) were the most important attachments. A wide
variety of anthropometric data was applied to the development of design
specifications and adjustments.
To produce a prototype for a new examination couch design developed from
the ergonomic research and initial user surveys, the researcher collaborated
with a medical couch manufacturer, Metron Medical Australia Pty Ltd. Through
this collaboration, the developed criteria and specifications were applied to
actual production processes.
User trials (a focus group, practitioner and patient surveys and personal
communication) were conducted to investigate the effectiveness and efficiency
of the couch prototype in a real clinical environment.
From the trials, modifications to
particular couch features were
identified if they were considered
difficult to operate, unnecessary or
uncomfortable for patients. For
example, the mechanism of the
gynaecological footpads, which
comprised three different adjustment controls, had to be simplified in order to
avoid confusion and time consumption. The footpads had also to be equipped
with straps or half a shoe to increase patient comfort and security.
The collaborating manufacturer will need to adapt the design modifications from
the user trials and conduct more extensive engineering research and value
analysis for a final production couch model. Nevertheless, this research
succesfully demonstrated the significance of ergonomics and user-centred
design in developing design criteria more effectively, detecting usability
problems before the couch is brought to the market, and in saving the
manufacturer's overall product development costs.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/219520 |
| Date | January 1999 |
| Creators | Sjukriana, Juke, n/a |
| Publisher | University of Canberra. Industrial Design |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | ), Copyright Juke Sjukriana |
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