Human Factors in Drone Delivery of Automatic External Defibrillators for Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest: Older Adult Considerations

Abstract

An Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) delivered by drone has the potential to improve survival rates of an Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest (OHCA) due to earlier access to defibrillation.There is a lack of user-centred, and older adult-focused research in this area. The present study evaluated the perceptions and interactions of older adults with a drone delivered AED operation to identify human factors considerations that may enable the design development of a more inclusive and accessible drone delivered AED service. A Drone Bystander Centred Design Framework (DBCD) for drone delivery of AEDs was developed and informed design concepts for key service touchpoints, including the drone itself, the drop mechanism, AED packaging, and dispatch communication. Results from this study provide novel insight into older adult characteristics and how they may relate to this emerging service model, older adults' service experience of a simulated drone delivered AED, as well as cognitive, psychographic, sensory, perception, and movement control considerations.