Using Dashboard Networks to Visualize Multiple Patient Histories: A Design Study on Post-Operative Prostate Cancer

Abstract

In this design study, we present a visualization technique that segments patients' histories instead of treating them as raw event sequences, aggregates the segments using criteria such as the whole history or treatment combinations, and then visualizes the aggregated segments as static dashboards that are arranged in a dashboard network to show longitudinal changes. The static dashboards were developed in nine iterations, to show 15 important attributes from the patients' histories. The final design was evaluated with five non-experts, five visualization experts and four medical experts, who successfully used it to gain an overview of a 2,000 patient dataset, and to make observations about longitudinal changes and differences between two cohorts. The research represents a step-change in the detail of large-scale data that may be successfully visualized using dashboards, and provides guidance about how the approach may be generalized.

Investigating Analytics Dashboards’ Support for the Value-based Healthcare Delivery Model

“…Putting value (in particular for patients) at the centre of any decision in the HC domain is a defining feature of the VBHC model [8], [9]. VBHC was introduced by Porter and Teisberg (2006) [3] and later further developed by [2] and Porter and Lee (2013) [10] resulting in a "value agenda" that made the following suggestions: (1) organize into integrated practice units; (2) measure outcomes and costs for every patient; (3) move to bundled payments for full care cycles; (4) integrate care delivery across separate facilities; (5) expand excellent services across geography (e.g., compete on value outcomes); and (6) build an enabling information technology platform [11]. In this new model, decision-makers' strategies in the health domain are largely about adding value for patients [2], [12].…”

“…Visualization has the potential to become an essential part of the HC field [4]. Today, the visualization of patients' health record is one of the primary topics of interest [4] in the HC field.…”

“…Visualization has the potential to become an essential part of the HC field [4]. Today, the visualization of patients' health record is one of the primary topics of interest [4] in the HC field. Dashboards as one of the important visualization tools can represent data and information in the HC organizations in a user-friendly style and can help several users in decision making to expose the most insightful information at a glance [12].…”

“…Furthermore, it would let patients see various treatments' outcomes/costs (value), and it allows them to see their short and long-term health status in a user-friendly format. Consequently, the use of dashboards can increase patients' satisfaction, selfefficacy and involvement in decision making (decisions concern to treatments types and follow up care) [4], [17], [19]- [21]. Guided by the VBHC principle, the design and use of information technology and decision aid tools, such as dashboards need to support the following elements.…”

“…Based on the principles underpinning this model, providers need to collect, monitor and analyse large amounts of data to evaluate and report value and have more value-driven outcomes [2], [3]. So, in the context of VBHC the use of information technologies and decision aid tools such as dashboard [4] which comprise visual displays of the essential data/information can be very useful tools for making sense of the large amount of clinical and operational data. Dashboards can allow clinicians to interpret information from multiple sources to inform decision-making on treatment options in real time.…”