Environmental Public Health Tracking - Utilizing Informatics to Inform the General Public

The Environmental Public Health Tracking (Tracking) Network provides information from a nationwide network of integrated health and environmental data to drive public health action. The Tracking Network is a resource for multiple audiences, including researchers, environmental and public health professionals, health care providers and the general public. In order to design a public portal that addressed the needs of these diverse users, the Tracking Program undertook a multi-phase usability project designed to gather insight to users' expectations regarding the Tracking Network's Public Portal; assess user perceptions on layout, ease of use, content navigation, and nomenclature. We used qualitative and quantitative methods to capture feedback from six predefined user groups: business and industry, not-for-profit/advocacy groups, health care professionals, public health professionals, congressional staff and media, general public. Remote testing, consisting of semi-structured interviews and use-case scenarios, documented users' current strategies for investigating environmental health issues. Mock-ups of the Tracking Network public portal were used to gather feedback, and landing pages were revised between phases of usability testing to incorporate recommended changes and then tested in subsequent rounds. Card sorting techniques allowed the program to define nomenclature and see how users grouped information. Through this iterative process, the program was able to refine and validate its design for the Tracking Network Public Portal while identifying and prioritizing future enhancements.