Table 1.

Summary of views expressed by clinician participants and individuals with impaired hand function throughout interview sessions.

Topic	Clinician comments	Participants with impaired hand comments
Grasp patterns	- Important to include thumb opposition - Acceptable to couple movement of digits 2/3 and 4/5 (to reduce number of motors)	- A variety of grasp patterns would be required to accomplish desired activities - Grasp patterns related to eating, drinking, writing, typing, and carrying items (e.g. grocery bags) were mentioned by at least half of the participants. (See Figure 2)
Grasp strength	- Lift the weight of an average drink - Lift utensil/toothbrush in tripod grip	- Lift the weight of an average drink - One participant: Lift up to 1 kg
Usage time	- Battery life of 6–8 h	- Four participants: would use device “all day” or “constantly” - Two participants: would use device for part of a day (“5–6 h” and “afternoon”) - Two participants: depend on comfort and bulk - Most participants did not want to take on and off multiple times per day; prefer one time of extended use
Hand open/close time	- Not addressed	- One participant: 1 s - Three participants: would prefer 1 s; 2 s still acceptable - Four participants: up to 4 s acceptable
Control	- A variety of interchangeable methods to allow users to select complexity (ranging from push button to EMG)	- Not specifically asked - One participant: mentioned they would not use device if it required a push button control strategy
Weight	- 200 g additional weight on hand would be acceptable - Potentially up to 500 g on forearm	- Seven participants: 200 g would be manageable additional weight - One participant: 200 g too heavy
Size/ bulk	- 5 × 5 × 3 cm3 volume maximum bulk on back of the hand - Careful not to impede wrist motion	- Three participants: size of a leather glove or ski glove - Most patient participants: 5 × 5 × 3 cm3 block too bulky - Prefer some weight on forearm to reduce weight on hand - Two participants: still want to cover arms with sleeves - Two participants: would accept some weight on body (i.e. belt); other participant strongly opposed
Noise	- Not addressed	- Two participants: not concerned with noise - Four participants: HiTEC motors too noisy to wear in public; Dymond D47 acceptable (see Supplemental Digital Content 1, http://links.lww.com/POI/A24)
Open discussion	- Should be adjustable enough that individuals could try before buying - Must be easy to clean; ideally waterproof	- Six of the eight participants indicated the importance of being able to don/doff device independently - Two participants: comfort important - One participant: concerned about being able to keep device clean and wash their hands - One participant: would want to be able to put on/take off a coat without having to take off the device - One participant: would not want device to cover their palm

EMG: electromyography.