Developing a Dashboard to Stimulate Independent Functioning in Older Persons in District Nursing Care

The desire of older adults to remain in their homes despite health challenges, as well as the aging population and rising health care costs, has prompted a shift from institutional care to home-based care. This change places district nurses at the forefront of supporting older adults’ independent functioning. However, limited evidence exists on effective interventions by district nurses and using routine patient care data to enhance independence. To address this, a user-centered design approach was applied to develop and validate a dashboard providing district nurses with actionable insights to improve care quality and promote independence. The process followed a 4-phase iterative framework: user and domain analysis through focus groups and interviews, data preparation with anonymized patient data sets, dashboard prototyping, and evaluation through feedback from nurses and IT specialists. Iterative end-user involvement with district nurses, nursing assistants, researchers, and managers ensured relevance and usability. The final prototype includes functionalities for monitoring changes over time and linking problems to practical aids and intervention targets. The dashboard, tailored for district nurses, provides a tool to monitor and improve the independent functioning of older adults. Future research will evaluate the dashboard’s impact on nursing interventions and its effectiveness in enhancing independent functioning.