PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Diane Wild AU - Nuz Quadri AU - Helen Marsden AU - Maggie Tabberer TI - Accessibility of the COPD assessment test (CAT) on electronic platforms DP - 2012 Sep 01 TA - European Respiratory Journal PG - P1287 VI - 40 IP - Suppl 56 4099 - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/Suppl_56/P1287.short 4100 - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/40/Suppl_56/P1287.full SO - Eur Respir J2012 Sep 01; 40 AB - Introduction: The COPD Assessment Test (CAT) is a short, validated questionnaire designed to measure the impact that Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) has on wellbeing and daily life. From its original paper validation, the CAT has migrated through to many electronic platforms such as the web, tablet devices, and hand-held devices. Usability testing studies have shown that the migration does not alter the way in which the items are interpreted and how they are completed by people with COPD.Objectives: The CAT has recently been developed for use as a smart phone app to increase accessibility for people with COPD. The usability of the smart phone app was explored in a sample of COPD patients.Methods: A qualitative study was conducted to test the usability of the app with ten people diagnosed with COPD. Participants completed the CAT using a smart phone, and were then asked questions on the usability as a smart phone app.Results: Due to the CAT being short and concise, the smart phone app works very well for hosting such a questionnaire. Navigating around the screen and selecting responses to the questions were completed with no major concerns for half of the patients. Others commented that the app version could benefit from the functionality of manually increasing the screen size, as this was not implemented before the usability testing was conducted, and is a common feature of smart phones.Conclusion: Although some further work is still required before the app is finalised, this study showed that the CAT has great potential for becoming accessible in many different electronic platforms.