On the topic of litter box cleaning, after plenty of experimentation I found my favorite method: disposable gloves. Much less clumsy than a scoop, easy to filter out clean litter before disposal, and easy to check stools for health.
I've tried gloves before, but because of the vet diet he's on his urine clods are huge because he doesn't concentrate his urine as normal cats do, and very prone to disintegrating if not scooped.