A Practical Approach for Novice Evaluators in Heuristic Evaluations: A Case Study Evaluating the Redesign in the Healthcare Domain

Heuristic evaluation is a method that involves the application of a set of predefined guidelines to evaluate whether an interface is intuitive, user-friendly, and effective. This method also serves to identify usability issues that might hinder the User Experience. Despite its simplicity and effectiveness, one of the most significant challenges in implementing it lies in adequately training new specialists to conduct these evaluations accurately and consistently. This paper describes a structured and practical approach developed within a university laboratory environment to train three novice students to perform heuristic evaluations. The aim was to foster the development of future usability professionals skilled in this crucial area of expertise. The digital product selected for evaluation was an interactive prototype, which represents the redesigned website of a hospital in Peru. This prototype was chosen due to the pressing need to improve digital platforms within the healthcare sector. In this domain, usability is critically important because it directly impacts patients’ safety, healthcare personnel's efficiency, and users’ overall satisfaction. The results revealed that, by the conclusion of the sessions, the novice evaluators were able to identify 25 usability problems in the website prototype. This approach effectively identified significant usability problems and demonstrated its value in equipping novice evaluators with a solid understanding of heuristic principles and their practical application. Moreover, the structured process, combined with using an interactive prototype as the study object, provided participants with a well-rounded and comprehensive learning experience. The study concludes that implementing structured training programs for novice evaluators in heuristic evaluation within academic settings is a viable and promising strategy to increase the pool of skilled usability professionals. Furthermore, it emphasizes the importance of employing formal methodologies to ensure a rigorous and effective evaluation process.