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NEW PLASTIC BOTTLE FOR ORAL NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS RESULTS IS PREFERRED BY SUBJECTS WITH IMPAIRED HAND/ARM FUNCTION WHEN COMPARED WITH TETRA PACKS
Branigan M (a), Gyi D (b). (a) Global Medical Department, Clinical Division, Numico Trading BV, The Netherlands. Loughborough University Enterprises Limited, Loughborough, United Kingdom.
Background: Most oral nutritional supplements (ONS) are currently available in tetra packs. This may not always be convenient for patients particularly those with impaired hand/arm function. This may adversely affect compliance. A new plastic bottle has been designed to improve acceptance, ease of use and convenience.
Aim: To conduct a comparative ergonomics evaluation of a new plastic bottle design in comparison with the tetra pack in terms of performance, visual appeal and pleasure factors.
Methods: Sixteen participants (8 males, 8 females), aged > 65 years were recruited. Ten had a medical condition that made using packaging difficult; 14 reported difficulties with using food packaging generally. Bottle and tetra were presented separately, in a balanced way to reduce any order effects. Intuitive use was observed and 15 packaging qualities were rated using a 5 point Likert Scale. The Wilcoxon?s matched pairs signed ranks test was used to examine differences in performance, visual appeal and pleasure elements of between packaging types.
Results: The bottle rated significantly higher than tetra for 6/8 of the ?performance? variables, 2/2 of the ?visual appeal? variables and 4/5 of the ?pleasure? variables. Ratings for the bottle cap were positive, all reporting ?ease of removing the cap? as either excellent (70%) or good (30%). 94% participants rated the bottle as either good or excellent for 12/15 criteria evaluated.
Conclusion: The new plastic bottle compared with tetra pack is preferred by individuals with hand/arm difficulties. These results suggest that the plastic bottle will facilitate use of ONS and may improve compliance.
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