User-centred design: the investigation, design and evaluation of an information handbook for coeliac patients

Abstract

Coeliac disease is an intestinal disorder, requiring patients to maintain a life-long gluten-free diet to ensure better health and reduce the risks of osteoporosis, intestinal lymphoma and other associated diseases. Patients must have access to clear information about the disease and about what foods are safe to eat, detect foods that contain gluten and make adjustments that need to be made to their diet. There is very little well designed information currently available for Coeliac patients. Eating out and shopping in supermarkets can become a nightmare. A User-centred design approach was used to generate information and insights on the Coeliac disease and patients' needs to conceptualise, design and evaluate an information handbook that is both functional and pleasurable to use. Questionnaires, interviews and focus groups were used to generate empirical data that guided a participative design process before the evaluation of the handbook. This project consists of a handbook as practical work that represents the main body of applied research. The practical work and the exegesis constitute 50% each of the thesis value.