Exploring the usability of a web-based platform for supporting people with dementia- related disorders and their caregivers

Background: The increasing number of People with Dementia (PwD) drives research exploring web-based support interventions to provide effective care for larger populations. In this concept, a web-based platform (CAREGIVERSPRO-MMD, 620911) was designed to i) improve the quality of life for PwD, ii) reduce caregiver burden, iii) reduce the financial costs for care, and to iv) reduce administration time for health and social care professionals. Objective: To evaluate the usability and usefulness of CAREGIVERSPRO-MMD platform for PwD or Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), informal caregivers, health and social care professionals in respect of a wider strategy followed by the project to enhance the user-centred approach. A secondary aim of the study was to collect recommendations in order to improve the platform prior to the future pilot study. Methods: A mixed methods design recruiting PwD or MCI (N= 24), informal caregivers (N= 24) and professionals (N= 10). Participants were asked to rate their satisfaction, the perceived usefulness and ease of use of each function of the platform. Qualitative questions about the improvement of the platform were asked when participants provided low scores for a function. Testing occurred at baseline and one week after participants used the platform. The dropout rate from baseline to the follow-up was approximately 10%. Results: After one week of platform use, the system was useful for 90% of the caregivers (20.75/23) and for 89% of the professionals (5.36/6). When users responded to more than one question per platform function, the mean of satisfied users per function was calculated. These user groups also provided positive evaluations for the ease of use (caregivers: 82%, 18.75/23; professionals: 97%, 5.82/6) and their satisfaction with the platform (caregivers: 79%, 18.08/23; professionals: 73%, 4.36/6). Ratings from PwD were lower than the other groups for usefulness (57%, 13/23), ease of use (41%, 9.4/23) and overall satisfaction (47%, 11/23) with the platform (P