Inclusive design strategies for older users of digital healthcare services
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.30857/2617-0272.2026.1.5Keywords:
information processing model, interaction barriers, aging-friendly design, cognitive load, user interfaceAbstract
Digital health applications have become routine tools for older adults to register appointments, pay medical fees and purchase medicines, yet many interfaces still impose heavy cognitive and operational demands. This study aimed to identify information-processing barriers faced by older adults when using the Chinese mobile health app Chunyu Doctor and to propose stage-based interface improvement strategies. 16 adults aged 60-70 years with prior experience of health apps completed semi-structured, one-on-one interviews while performing consultation, medication purchase and insurance settlement tasks. Interview transcripts were coded thematically and mapped onto three stages of interaction: perception, cognition and execution. The analysis revealed that perception barriers arise from dense screens, weak text and icon legibility, ambiguous tappable areas and hardly noticeable audio prompts. Cognitive barriers involved technical terminology that exceeds immediate comprehension, icon metaphors that do not reliably signal function, and section structures that conflict with users’ task logic. Execution barriers centre on difficulty locating key functions, demanding gesture operations, lengthy branched flows and tight time limits in steps such as verification codes. On this basis, the study proposed stagespecific design strategies that reorganise navigation around medical tasks, rewrite critical text in plain language, adjust icon sets and grouping, and relax temporal and feedback constraints. The results offer a process-based reference for evaluating and improving age-friendly interaction in digital health services
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References
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