Background: Cardiac telerehabilitation (CTR) interventions can provide accessible and affordable remote rehabilitation services. However, as cardiac rehabilitation (CR) primarily targets inactive patients, little is known about the experiences with CR of highly active patients (ie, recreational athletes or, simply, athletes) with established coronary artery disease. Consequently, existing CTR interventions do not address the specific needs of the athletic subpopulation. Understanding the needs and values of athletes is crucial for designing meaningful CTR interventions that enhance user acceptance and engagement, thereby facilitating effective rehabilitation for this patient subgroup. Objective: This study aimed to inform the design of technologies that facilitate CTR for athletes. We intended to identify athletes' values related to CR, including health and sports tracking, as well as high-level requirements for technologies that can facilitate the CTR of athletes according to the identified values. Methods: We used value-sensitive design with a human-centric design approach to elicit design requirements for CTR that can serve athletes with established coronary artery disease. To identify athletes' values, we conducted 25 value-oriented semistructured interviews with 15 athletic patients and 10 health care professionals involved in CR programs. In a second phase, we conducted 6 card-sorting focus group sessions with 13 patients and 7 health care professionals to identify desired CTR features. Finally, we derived high-level CTR technology requirements connected to the athletes' needs and values. Results: We defined 12 athlete values divided into 3 categories: body centric, care centric, and data and technology centric. We clustered findings from the card-sorting activity into CTR technology requirements, such as remotely monitored sport-specific training and training data representations next to clinical limitations, and paired them with corresponding values. Conclusions: Athletes have distinct values and health goals in CR compared to general populations targeted by CTR interventions. Designing patient-centric CTR interventions that address these needs is crucial to support optimal recovery, safe return to sports, and adherence to CTR technologies in the home environment.

Cardiac telerehabilitation (CTR) relies heavily on telemonitoring, predominantly gathering automated biophysical or survey data for clinical decision-making. However, lifestyle change during and after cardiac rehabilitation (CR) outside hospitals is impacted by many contextual factors, including mental well-being or social support. Failure to acknowledge these factors in remote cardiac care could result in healthcare professionals (HCPs) offering standardized recommendations that hinder health management. To gain insights into the utilization of contextual information in clinical decision-making in Dutch CR, we conducted semi-structured interviews with seven HCPs and CR experts. Our data analysis highlights the importance of routine, physical, and psychosocial information during holistic clinical decision-making. We argue for a transition towards a holistic approach to telemonitoring in CTR, discussing implications for more inclusive and contextual data-gathering practices.

Purpose: To define the user needs and preferences of the athletic population in cardiac (tele)rehabilitation (CTR).

Patients and Methods: In this qualitative study, we included athletes with established coronary artery disease (CAD) who participated in a cardiac rehabilitation (CR) program and health care professionals involved in CR. All athletes engaged in sports for at least four hours per week. Fourteen male and one female athlete (mean age 63 ± 10.6 years) participated in CR after an acute coronary syndrome, percutaneous coronary intervention and/or coronary bypass surgery. The twelve healthcare professionals invited included cardiac nurse practitioners, cardiologists, sports physicians, physiotherapists, and a clinical psychologist. This study consists of four phases: a stakeholder identification session, twenty-five semi-structured individual interviews, six card-sorting focus groups and a data analysis phase with thematic analysis.

Results: User needs for athletes in CR encompass personalized exercise plans featuring clear and quantifiable exercise recommendations and limitations. Additionally, there is a need for monitoring health and exercise data; measuring progression and performance longitudinally; easy-to-use, and reliable healthcare information systems with accurate sensors and data; as well as clinical supervision and validation of information and data. Social support from both peers and family is also identified as a crucial need. The preferred technological features for a CTR system tailored for athletes include periodic digital consultations with clinicians, home-based training specific to one’s sport, utilization of technology to monitor workouts, data sharing and remote feedback, personalized exercise recommendations and online educational materials.

Conclusion: This research explored the user needs and preferences of athlete patients in CR. The findings indicated that enhancing CR for athletes necessitates a personalized and sport-specific methodology. The integration of various technological features within a CTR program can play a pivotal role in assisting athletes with CAD to maintain an active lifestyle and regain their previous athletic performance levels.

Designing with data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) can bring significant value to the development of systems and technologies that promote personal wellbeing. However, there are also unaddressed challenges and risks connected to designing (with) AI for wellbeing, such as the difficulties in ensuring that the generated feedback or proposed interventions are relevant considering the large interpersonal variations between the current, desired and achievable level of physical and mental wellbeing of different individuals. In this one-day hybrid workshop, we aim to bring together design and HCI researchers and practitioners interested in the intersection of design, AI, and wellbeing beyond clinical applications. We will discuss challenges in designing with AI for wellbeing originating from a) the domains of design and b) general issues in developing AI systems, and uncover new potential directions that emerge when coupling design, AI and wellbeing. Our aim is to bring together researchers and practitioners from various fields and backgrounds who use data and AI when designing for wellbeing. Through this workshop, we aim to create a conceptual framework that enables the emergence of rich, meaningful, and ethical solutions for designing (with) AI for wellbeing, while also providing handles to mitigate the emergence of negative consequences.