Usability evaluation of pharmacogenomics clinical decision support aids and clinical knowledge resources in a computerized provider order entry system: A mixed methods approach

• CPOE with PGx-CDS can improve medication safety.
• Usability can drive adoption; few evaluations have been completed.
• We conducted a usability study with cardiologists and oncologists.
• Results suggest design improvements could be made to the user interface.
• Provision of PGx information is important; must be presented in intuitive ways.

BackgroundPharmacogenomics (PGx) is positioned to have a widespread impact on the practice of medicine, yet physician acceptance is low. The presentation of context-specific PGx information, in the form of clinical decision support (CDS) alerts embedded in a computerized provider order entry (CPOE) system, can aid uptake. Usability evaluations can inform optimal design, which, in turn, can spur adoption.ObjectivesThe study objectives were to: (1) evaluate an early prototype, commercial CPOE system with PGx-CDS alerts in a simulated environment, (2) identify potential improvements to the system user interface, and (3) understand the contexts under which PGx knowledge embedded in an electronic health record is useful to prescribers.MethodsUsing a mixed methods approach, we presented seven cardiologists and three oncologists with five hypothetical clinical case scenarios. Each scenario featured a drug for which a gene encoding drug metabolizing enzyme required consideration of dosage adjustment. We used Morae® to capture comments and on-screen movements as participants prescribed each drug. In addition to PGx-CDS alerts, ‘Infobutton®’ and ‘Evidence’ icons provided participants with clinical knowledge resources to aid decision-making.ResultsNine themes emerged. Five suggested minor improvements to the CPOE user interface; two suggested presenting PGx information through PGx-CDS alerts using an ‘Infobutton’ or ‘Evidence’ icon. The remaining themes were strong recommendations to provide succinct, relevant guidelines and dosing recommendations of phenotypic information from credible and trustworthy sources; any more information was overwhelming. Participants’ median rating of PGx-CDS system usability was 2 on a Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly agree) to 7 (strongly disagree).ConclusionsUsability evaluation results suggest that participants considered PGx information important for improving prescribing decisions; and that they would incorporate PGx-CDS when information is presented in relevant and useful ways.