台灣綜合型醫院藥袋資訊設計研究

Abstract

藥袋除了具有盛裝藥品的包裝功能外，並有藥品資訊及用藥提示等資訊傳達的作用；因此藥袋上的複雜資訊，是否能有效傳達給使用者即是一大課題。現行藥袋大都未經合適的資訊設計，也缺乏藥袋設計的相關研究。因此，本研究創作期望透過研究後，歸納藥袋資設計原則，再根據原則進行設計，最終產出符合使用者需求且能量產的藥袋。研究分為兩階段，第一階段為了解病患、藥師、藥袋製造廠商三端的資訊需求與資訊處理過程；第二階段進行藥袋設計，在設計過程中，同時進行使用者測試以確認新的藥袋設計符合使用者需求。 研究階段以藥袋蒐集、實地觀察、使用者訪談的方式進行調查分析，研究結果發現：1）患者與藥師的資訊閱讀順序不同，對於藥袋上的資訊重要性有所差異；2）患者與藥師雙方使用者皆認為現行藥袋上資訊的易讀性、可閱讀性仍不足；3）現今科技可支援多樣化的彩色藥袋印製。本研究亦確認藥袋資訊應具有的內容、重要性排序、資訊間的群組關係，並整理出資訊設計的原則：1）資訊架構：依照使用者需求進行資訊分類，並將資訊依重要程度由左上至右下排列；2）字體需於12級以上、行距為1.2倍行高、英文藥品名宜字首大寫，其餘字母小寫；3）文字色彩與背景顏色需有高對比；4） 增加視覺元素輔助閱讀。 第二階段為藥袋設計，在設計過程中進行一般使用者、藥師、視覺設計師的使用者評估，根據估結果進行修正。最後的設計成品具有下列特色：1）資料分為五大群組編排：患者基本資料、藥品資訊、服用方式、藥師與院方資訊以及領藥資訊；2）藥袋內容增添「下次就診時間提示」、「藥品相片」、「藥品條碼」，確保用藥安全；3）藥袋資料經過資訊縮減、合併，輔以14級以上的文字與引導圖樣編排，具有良好的閱讀性與視認性；4）左下角具視窗設計，使用者可快速對照藥品資訊與藥品實體；5）新版藥袋資訊容忍度高且可量產。

Drug bags not only serve the purpose of packaging medicines but also conveying medical information, such as prescriptions or dosage. However, the information design on presently used drug bags has not met the needs of target users. Research related to drug bag design is insufficient in Taiwan; moreover, it is essential to accurately convey medicinal information to the users. This study aims to understand the context of medicine usage and the process of conveying them to users, propose information design guidelines for drug bags, and design a new, legible, and readable drug bag that will be available for mass production. This study is divided into two stages: In the first stage, we interview patients, pharmacists, and a bag manufacturer to realize the needs of target users and the process of conveying drug bag information. In the second stage, we introduce a new drug bag design on the basis of the research results. During the design process, user testing is conducted to confirm whether the new layout meets the target users’ needs. In the first stage, data collection and context analysis include drug bag collection, field studies, and self-structured interviews. The main results are as follows: 1) Patients and pharmacists have evident differences in reading habits relating to drug bag information and dissimilar opinions on reading order and the hierarchy of information. 2) Current drug bags lack clarity and readability. 3) The interview with the drug bags’ printer and manufacturer reveal that present-day technology is able to color print drug bags. On the basis of the survey and interview conducted, we propose guidelines for information design on drug bags. 1) The information must be grouped, classified, and merged in accordance with the needs of the targets users, and arranged from upper left to lower right according to its importance. 2) The font size and line spacing on drug bags should be greater than 12 point and 1.2, respectively. In addition, the English drug name should be prefixed and uppercased. 3) The text and background color should highly contrast each other, thereby, adding a visual element to improve readability. In the second stage, the information design on the drug bag is revised and designed depending on the drug bag information guidelines and users’ suggestions from user testing. The new design incorporates the following characteristics: 1) Information on drug bags is grouped into five categories—individual information, drug introduction, dosage instruction, pharmacy information, and register information. 2) Additional items—bar code, photographs of the drug, and the registration information are incorporated to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of drug bag usage. 3) The text which is printed at least in 14 point, and additional pharmaceutical pictograms are incorporated to improve the readability and clarity of information. 4) A window on the bag front allows users to check the information and drug simultaneously. 5) The new drug bag is highly tolerant to different contents and is available for mass production.