Embedding Empathy into Visual Analytics: A Framework for Person-Centred Dementia Care

Abstract

Dementia care requires healthcare professionals to balance a patient's medical needs with a deep understanding of their personal needs, preferences, and emotional cues. However, current digital tools prioritise quantitative metrics over empathetic engagement,limiting caregivers ability to develop a deeper personal understanding of their patients. This paper presents an empathy centred visualisation framework, developed through a design study, to address this gap. The framework integrates established principles of person centred care with empathy mapping methodologies to encourage deeper engagement. Our methodology provides a structured approach to designing for indirect end users, patients whose experience is shaped by a tool they may not directly interact with. To validate the framework, we conducted evaluations with healthcare professinals, including usability testing of a working prototype and a User Experience Questionnaire study. Results suggest the feasibility of the framework, with participants highlighting its potential to support a more personal and empathetic relationship between medical staff and patients. The work starts to explore how empathy could be systematically embedded into visualisation design, as we contribute to ongoing efforts in the data visualisation community to support human centred, interpretable, and ethically aligned clinical care, addressing the urgent need to improve dementia patients experiences in hospital settings.