So You Think You Can Code? Basics of Design and Coding in the Development of the SIR Guidelines Mobile Application

Monday, March 6, 2023

5:50 PM – 5:55 PM

Location: Phoenix Convention Center, North Ballroom 120ABC, Poster Hall

Abstract Presenter(s)

Joseph D. Macksood

Student
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose

Author/Co-author(s)

Seth Berkowitz, MD

Interventional Radiologist
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
JD

John Do, MD

Resident Physician
University of California San Diego
Mathew Thomas, MD

Resident Physician
University of California San Diego
Sheena Patel, MPH

Director, Clinical Guidelines and Standards
Society of Interventional Radiology
JC

Joseph Chui, n/a

Head of Machine Learning
Ferrum Health
AC

Adrian Chui, n/a

Student
Roman Catholic High School, Philadelphia
EH

Elizabeth A. Himes, MPH

Guideline Methodologist
Society of Interventional Radiology
Osman Ahmed, MD

Associate Prof
University of Chicago
AG

Andrew Gunn, MD

Program Director IR/DR
University of Alabama At Birmingham
Alda L. Tam, MD, FSIR

Professor, Department of Interventional Radiology, Division of Diagnostic Imaging
MD Anderson Cancer Center
Junjian Huang, MD

Assistant Professor
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Disclosure(s):

Joseph D. Macksood: No financial relationships to disclose

Osman Ahmed, MD: Argon Medical: Advisory Committee or Review Panel Member (Ongoing); Asahi: Consultant (Ongoing); Bard Peripheral Vascular: Speaking and Teaching (Terminated, September 1, 2022); Boston Scientific: Advisory Committee or Review Panel Member (Ongoing), Consultant (Ongoing); Canon Medical Systems: Consultant (Ongoing), Contracted Research (Ongoing); Cook: Speaking and Teaching (Ongoing); Johnson & Johnson: Advisory Committee or Review Panel Member (Ongoing); Penumbra Inc.: Speaking and Teaching (Ongoing); Philips: Contracted Research (Terminated, October 1, 2022)

Andrew Gunn, MD: Boston Scientific: Consultant (Ongoing), Speaking and Teaching (Ongoing); Penumbra: Research Grant Recipient (Ongoing); Varian: Consultant (Ongoing), Research Grant Recipient (Ongoing), Speaking and Teaching (Ongoing)

Alda L. Tam, MD, FSIR: Boston Scientific: Research Grant Recipient (Ongoing); Johnson & Johnson: Research Grant Recipient (Ongoing)

Learning Objectives:

Provide an overview of basic mobile application design and coding principles.

Present pertinent examples from the development of the Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) guidelines app.

Background: The need for accessible, beneficial, and easy to use clinical resources has been a driving factor for the adoption of mobile devices by healthcare providers to facilitate clinical decision making. SIR published their own sets of guidelines from which a task force was created to develop a mobile guidelines app. Putting guidelines into the hands of healthcare providers via the app interface is imperative, as up to 88% of clinicians use their mobile devices frequently in their practices{1}.

Clinical Findings/Procedure Details: Two independent prototypes, one web-based design and one mobile application, were taken into consideration during the design phase to combine successful ventures. Brainstorming and clinician insight among the task force were taken into account to create a user-friendly and adaptable user interface for a mobile application. Iterative designs were created and subsequently coded in Xcode. GitHub served as the codebase host platform, allowing for a central repository and collaborative coding. Use of third-party application programming interfaces and structured query language allowed for greater function, cross-platform integration, and analytics. Beta tests were completed initially with TestFlight for members in the task force and subsequently a limited release of the app on the Apple Store. Feedback was integrated into the app platform, and the app was made publicly available.

Conclusion and/or Teaching Points: The use of mobile apps has the potential to improve guideline uptake and clinical workflow. A degree of coding literacy is beneficial to all members of the interventional radiology community.