Evaluating User Engagement and Design Effectiveness of the US COVID Atlas: Insights and Recommendations for Enhanced Public Health Data Dashboards Usability

Abstract

We evaluated the US COVID to understand how various users engage with features offered by the Atlas. We focused on how community members vis-à-vis Academics/researchers and other professional groups engage with the US COVID Atlas. Using five data dashboard design domains, including visual design, users' profession, complexity and functionality of features and tools, dataset, and ease of navigation, we employed quantitative survey analysis to evaluate the purpose of using the Atlas and the features used when accessing the Atlas. We also reviewed 10 data dashboards across urban, suburban, and rural areas in the US to identify best practices in developing health dashboards. In total, we collected data from 30 valid participants in the US within the age range of 18-30. The data was examined across various groups, their demographics, US Covid Atlas use, and the US Covid Atlas’ interface. Interestingly, the results show that although most community members have limited/ no mapping experience, they were more interested in understanding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. We also uncovered limitations in the visual design and connection of the Atlas to users’ work, while few found the Atlas overly complex to understand. In line with the challenges identified, we recommend thinking more about community engagement and bringing their perspectives to future data dashboard design, limiting sophisticated design tools to better provide meaningful context among community members and other professional organizations. In addition, we recommend more research to identify and contextualize these best practices in the data dashboard.