Dietary HabitsDietCoachNCT06611943
DietCoach: Development and Dietitian Evaluation of a Digital Dietary Counseling Platform
An observational study of Dietary Habits and Food Habits, run by University of St.Gallen at 1 site in Switzerland.
Trial summary
The DietCoach study aims to investigate the requirements of a digital dietary counseling platform, and evaluate the dietitian acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform, which was developed based on the collected requirements. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Dietary Habits, Food Habits, Nutrition, Healthy
- What is being tested?
- DietCoach
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- How many people
- 30 participants
- Where
- 1 siteSwitzerland
- Study dates
- 29 Aug 2024to 30 Dec 2024
- Phase
- Observational
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 years and older
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Study population: The study aims to include all dietitians in Switzerland as potential participants. However, since recruitment will be conducted through contacting the nutritional departments of cantonal hospitals in the German-speaking area, the participant pool is expected to consist primarily of dietitians from several cantonal hospitals located in the German-speaking region of Switzerland.
Who may be able to join
- Dietitians in Switzerland
- German-speaking (the platform is in German, a main language in Switzerland)
Who cannot join
None listed.
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
Switzerland1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
University of St.Gallen
Sankt Gallen, St.Gallen, 9000
Jing Wu, M.Sc., +41779934166, jing.wu@unisg.ch
About this study
The DietCoach study aims to investigate the requirements of a digital dietary counseling platform, and evaluate the dietitian acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform, which was developed based on the collected requirements. Additionally, the study examines how different levels of patient food purchase data availability affect these factors. The DietCoach platform automatically tracks historic and up-to-date patient food purchase data on loyalty cards and provides nutritional analysis, assisting dietitians in the dietary counseling process. The key research questions (RQ) are:
- What are the requirements of a digital dietary counseling system based on food purchase data?
- What is acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform evaluated by dietitians?
- How does the availability of patient food purchase data influence the acceptance and perceived usability of the DietCoach platform by dietitians?
Read more
Dietitians from several cantonal hospitals in the German-speaking area of Switzerland are invited to participate in the study. To answer RQ1, we conduct a workshop and a survey with dietitians to derive key requirements on dietary counseling systems. To answer RQ2 and RQ3, we use a cross-sectional, mixed-methods, between-subjects study design.
Researchers will evaluate and compare the acceptance and usability of DietCoach in 3 different conditions (3 patients that had different, i.e., high, medium and low, food purchase data availability). Each participant is assigned to the data of one patient. Participants are required to:
- use the DietCoach platform to provide at least one dietary recommendation to patient food purchase data in two separate sessions.
- provide quantitative and qualitative feedback about the acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform.
Read the detailed description
The DietCoach study aims to investigate the requirements of a digital dietary counseling platform, and evaluate the dietitian acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform, which was developed based on the collected requirements. Additionally, the study examines how different levels of patient food purchase data availability affect these factors. The DietCoach platform automatically tracks historic and up-to-date patient food purchases on loyalty cards and provides nutritional analysis.
Dietitians from several cantonal hospitals in the German-speaking area of Switzerland are invited to participate. To collect the key requirements of a digital dietary counseling platform based on food purchase data, we conduct a workshop and a survey, using guiding questions designed based on our research over the last years. To understand the acceptance and usability of DietCoach and how food purchase data availability influences these factors, we use a cross-sectional, mixed-methods, between-subjects study design. Each participant is assigned to the data of one patient. Participants need to:
- use the DietCoach platform to provide at least one dietary recommendation to patient food purchase data in two separate sessions.
- provide quantitative and qualitative feedback about the acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform.
The DietCoach usability study includes three conditions (data from three patients), defined by High, Medium, and Low levels of patient food purchase data availability. Data availability is determined by the number of baskets/items (from the major Swiss retail chain) per person in a patient household. Participants are randomly assigned to the data of one patient.
In both the initial and follow-up sessions, participants need to provide at least one dietary recommendation based on the patient's health status and food purchase data over 8 weeks. The food purchase data in the follow-up session covers the 8 weeks immediately following those considered in the initial session. After completing the assigned tasks on the platform, participants are asked to complete a survey assessing their acceptance of and the usability of the DietCoach platform.
- Conditions
- Dietary Habits, Food Habits, Nutrition, Healthy, Diet, Healthy
- Being tested
- DietCoach
- Keywords
- Digital dietary counseling, Food purchase data, Dietitian interface, eHealth, Human-Computer Interaction
- Medical subject headings
- Feeding Behavior
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
DietCoachBehavioural
Participants are invited to give at least one dietary recommendation to a patient\'s food purchase data using the DietCoach platform.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Low patient food shopping coverage | In this group, participants need to give at least one dietary recommendation to a patient whose loyalty card(s) cover(s) a low percentage of food purchases. Receives: Behavioral: DietCoach | |
| Medium patient food shopping coverage | In this group, participants need to give at least one dietary recommendation to a patient whose loyalty card(s) cover(s) a medium percentage of their food purchases. Receives: Behavioral: DietCoach | |
| High patient food shopping coverage | In this group, participants need to give to at least one dietary recommendation to a patient whose loyalty card(s) cover(s) a high percentage of food purchases. Receives: Behavioral: DietCoach |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Key requirements of a digital dietary counseling system based on food purchase data
The key requirements for a digital dietary counseling system based on food purchase data will be identified through the dietitian workshop and the dietitian survey. They primarily focus on:
- food purchase data availability: number of baskets/items per person in a patient household, and the duration of data availability.
- use cases: percentage of participants identifying critical use cases (e.g., recommending alternative food products).
- product information: most important product information (e.g., energy, sugar) identified by dietitians for a dietary counseling system.
All outcomes will be quantified using a 5-point Likert scale (from 1 very low importance to 5 very high importance), according to participant responses. Participants are additionally allowed to add more suggestions/recommendation/comments using free text.
Measured: Immediately after the DietCoach intervention
Acceptance of the DietCoach platform
Evaluated by the modified Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) constructs. The constructs include performance expectancy, effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, hedonic motivation and behavioral intention.
The construct levels can be indicated by the average score on a 7-point Likert scale.
Measured: Immediately after the DietCoach intervention
Usability of the DietCoach platform
Measured by the average System Usability Scale (SUS) score, ranging from 0 to 100. The higher the SUS score, the better the usability
Measured: Immediately after the DietCoach intervention
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted25 Sep 2024
- Study start29 Aug 2024
- Primary completion30 Dec 2024 (estimated)
- Study completion30 Dec 2024 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Dietary HabitsStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Observational
- Observational model
- Other
- Time perspective
- Cross-sectional
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of St.Gallen
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Insel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Wu Jing, University of St.Gallen
- Investigators
- Jing Wu, M.Sc., Principal investigator, University of St.Gallen
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06611943
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- UStGallen
- Acronym
- DietCoach
- Status last verified
- Sep 2024
- First submitted
- 9 Sep 2024
- Last updated
- 25 Sep 2024
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Yes: We plan to publish anonymized partial food purchase data of the selected patients, and the corresponding dietary recommendations from the DietCoach study participants (dietitians) 1. The data will be published in an anonymized form. 2. Only purchase records that can be identified by our food composition database and belong to relevant food categories will be published.
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 25 Sep 2024. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- DietCoach: Development and Dietitian Evaluation of a Digital Dietary Counseling Platform
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06611943
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- DietCoach / UStGallen
- Conditions
- Dietary Habits, Food Habits, Nutrition, Healthy, Diet, Healthy
- Keywords
- Digital dietary counseling, Food purchase data, Dietitian interface, eHealth, Human-Computer Interaction
- Study type
- Observational
- Recruitment status
- Unknown status
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of St.GallenUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Insel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern
- Study start
- 29 Aug 2024 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 30 Dec 2024 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 30 Dec 2024 (estimated)
- First posted
- 25 Sep 2024 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The DietCoach study aims to investigate the requirements of a digital dietary counseling platform, and evaluate the dietitian acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform, which was developed based on the collected requirements. Additionally, the study examines how different levels of patient food purchase data availability affect these factors. The DietCoach platform automatically tracks historic and up-to-date patient food purchase data on loyalty cards and provides nutritional analysis, assisting dietitians in the dietary counseling process. The key research questions (RQ) are:
- What are the requirements of a digital dietary counseling system based on food purchase data?
- What is acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform evaluated by dietitians?
- How does the availability of patient food purchase data influence the acceptance and perceived usability of the DietCoach platform by dietitians?
Dietitians from several cantonal hospitals in the German-speaking area of Switzerland are invited to participate in the study. To answer RQ1, we conduct a workshop and a survey with dietitians to derive key requirements on dietary counseling systems. To answer RQ2 and RQ3, we use a cross-sectional, mixed-methods, between-subjects study design.
Researchers will evaluate and compare the acceptance and usability of DietCoach in 3 different conditions (3 patients that had different, i.e., high, medium and low, food purchase data availability). Each participant is assigned to the data of one patient. Participants are required to:
- use the DietCoach platform to provide at least one dietary recommendation to patient food purchase data in two separate sessions.
- provide quantitative and qualitative feedback about the acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform.
Detailed description
The DietCoach study aims to investigate the requirements of a digital dietary counseling platform, and evaluate the dietitian acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform, which was developed based on the collected requirements. Additionally, the study examines how different levels of patient food purchase data availability affect these factors. The DietCoach platform automatically tracks historic and up-to-date patient food purchases on loyalty cards and provides nutritional analysis.
Dietitians from several cantonal hospitals in the German-speaking area of Switzerland are invited to participate. To collect the key requirements of a digital dietary counseling platform based on food purchase data, we conduct a workshop and a survey, using guiding questions designed based on our research over the last years. To understand the acceptance and usability of DietCoach and how food purchase data availability influences these factors, we use a cross-sectional, mixed-methods, between-subjects study design. Each participant is assigned to the data of one patient. Participants need to:
- use the DietCoach platform to provide at least one dietary recommendation to patient food purchase data in two separate sessions.
- provide quantitative and qualitative feedback about the acceptance and usability of the DietCoach platform.
The DietCoach usability study includes three conditions (data from three patients), defined by High, Medium, and Low levels of patient food purchase data availability. Data availability is determined by the number of baskets/items (from the major Swiss retail chain) per person in a patient household. Participants are randomly assigned to the data of one patient.
In both the initial and follow-up sessions, participants need to provide at least one dietary recommendation based on the patient's health status and food purchase data over 8 weeks. The food purchase data in the follow-up session covers the 8 weeks immediately following those considered in the initial session. After completing the assigned tasks on the platform, participants are asked to complete a survey assessing their acceptance of and the usability of the DietCoach platform.
Study design
- Observational model
- Other
- Time perspective
- Cross-sectional
- Number of arms
- 3
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Low patient food shopping coverage | – | Behavioral: DietCoachIn this group, participants need to give at least one dietary recommendation to a patient whose loyalty card(s) cover(s) a low percentage of food purchases. |
| Medium patient food shopping coverage | – | Behavioral: DietCoachIn this group, participants need to give at least one dietary recommendation to a patient whose loyalty card(s) cover(s) a medium percentage of their food purchases. |
| High patient food shopping coverage | – | Behavioral: DietCoachIn this group, participants need to give to at least one dietary recommendation to a patient whose loyalty card(s) cover(s) a high percentage of food purchases. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 years and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
- Study population
- The study aims to include all dietitians in Switzerland as potential participants. However, since recruitment will be conducted through contacting the nutritional departments of cantonal hospitals in the German-speaking area, the participant pool is expected to consist primarily of dietitians from several cantonal hospitals located in the German-speaking region of Switzerland.
Key inclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Dietitians in Switzerland
- German-speaking (the platform is in German, a main language in Switzerland)
Key exclusion criteria (0 listed)
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| DietCoachParticipants are invited to give at least one dietary recommendation to a patient\'s food purchase data using the DietCoach platform. | Behavioural | High patient food shopping coverage, Low patient food shopping coverage, Medium patient food shopping coverage |
Primary outcome
Key requirements of a digital dietary counseling system based on food purchase data
Time frame: Immediately after the DietCoach intervention
The key requirements for a digital dietary counseling system based on food purchase data will be identified through the dietitian workshop and the dietitian survey. They primarily focus on: 1. food purchase data availability: number of baskets/items per person in a patient household, and the duration of data availability. 2. use cases: percentage of participants identifying critical use cases (e.g., recommending alternative food products). 3. product information: most important product information (e.g., energy, sugar) identified by dietitians for a dietary counseling system. All outcomes will be quantified using a 5-point Likert scale (from 1 very low importance to 5 very high importance), according to participant responses. Participants are additionally allowed to add more suggestions/recommendation/comments using free text.
Acceptance of the DietCoach platform
Time frame: Immediately after the DietCoach intervention
Evaluated by the modified Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) constructs. The constructs include performance expectancy, effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, hedonic motivation and behavioral intention. The construct levels can be indicated by the average score on a 7-point Likert scale.
Usability of the DietCoach platform
Time frame: Immediately after the DietCoach intervention
Measured by the average System Usability Scale (SUS) score, ranging from 0 to 100. The higher the SUS score, the better the usability
Results and safety
Results are not available in the source record.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 25 Sep 2024.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: Yes. We plan to publish anonymized partial food purchase data of the selected patients, and the corresponding dietary recommendations from the DietCoach study participants (dietitians) 1. The data will be published in an anonymized form. 2. Only purchase records that can be identified by our food composition database and belong to relevant food categories will be published.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Jing Wu, M.Sc. principal investigator
University of St.Gallen
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
An observational study of Dietary Habits and Food Habits, run by University of St.Gallen at 1 site in Switzerland.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 2 inclusion and 0 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: status not confirmed, as of the sponsor's last update on 25 Sep 2024. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in Switzerland. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
Results are not available in the source record.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Jing Wu, M.Sc. (+4177 99 34 166, jing.wu@unisg.ch), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Key requirements of a digital dietary counseling system based on food purchase data (time frame: Immediately after the DietCoach intervention). The study lists 3 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 25 Sep 2024.