PatientFirst
Promoting Physical Activity through Design
Patients First is aimed at improving healthcare for patients. The initiative aims to place people and patients at the center of healthcare by more deeply understanding patient needs and experiences and improving patient outcomes.
​
The task is to conduct research that builds an understanding of patient experiences more generally, while attempting to understand how people manage their health through existing healthcare services and sources of information.
​
Time:
3 Weeks Duration
Roles:
UX Researcher, UX| UI Designer, Branding
Project Type:
Academic | App for IOS
Tools:
Figma
Slack
InVision
Understanding the Problem
High Maternal Mortality
The United States has the highest rate of maternal mortality than any other developed country.
Research to Further Understand
.png)
Defining Maternal Mortality
First I had to become informed on the topic of Maternal Mortality.
I need to understand how the issue is defined and its nuances.
Most Maternal Deaths Occur After Birth
Most maternal deaths occur AFTER birth. A little bit more than half of all maternal deaths occur up to one year after labor
The CDC Suggested Actions for Reducing Maternal Mortality
Pregnant people should
-
Talk to a healthcare provider if anything doesn’t feel right or is concerning.
​
-
Know and seek immediate care if experiencing any of the urgent maternal warning signs
​
-
Document and share pregnancy history during each medical care visit for up to one year after delivery.
​
-
Maintain ongoing healthcare and social support systems before, during, and after pregnancy.
Percentage of Patients having communication Issues
Communication Issues Women Reported with Doctors
Listening to Mothers III (2018 ) survey found that
One in six women
reported experiencing one or more types of mistreatment such as:
-
Loss of autonomy
​
-
Being shouted at
​
-
Scolded
​
-
Threatened
​
-
Being ignored
​
-
Refused, or receiving no response to requests for help
Interviews
Criteria:
​
-
Women who are currently pregnant in the United States
​
-
Women who have been pregnant and given birth in the United States
​
-
Women who have had complications in their pregnancy/ labor
Understanding pregnant women's experiences
In an effort to understand the issues pregnant women face during the pregnancy and labor journey, I conducted primary research where I interviewed four women who meet any of the following criteria:​
Affinity Mapping
Mapping out interview insights
After interviewing four women who meet the criteria, I started mapping insights that I found in their experiences.
I organized insights into pain points (red), motivations (green), and behaviors (blue).
​
Looking at insights I started to notice patterns and organized their insights into key themes.
Insight Themes
Knowledge of Pregnancy / Labor
Women expressed they wanted to be as informed as possible with their pregnancy and labor but they were not fully prepared for experiencing labor.
Hospital/ Clinic Experience
Women expressed not having intimate birthing experiences in the hospital. They spoke about labor issues and how the hospital confronted those issues. In some cases the patients were not consulted before a specific procedure or treatment. Most women reported feeling a lack of autonomy during labor.
Doctor Patient Bond (Chosen Theme)
Women expressed how doctors and hospital staff treatment had a big role in their birthing experiences. They wanted Doctors and nurses to care about them and what they were experiencing. Doctors who were there "just to check boxes" or were judgmental, tainted the experience for the women.
Design Challenge
How Might We facilitate communication between expecting mothers and their doctors to help decrease high maternal mortality in the United States
Competitive Research
I looked at apps that target similar users to see what features were available, what are some industry standards, and what is missing in the problem space.
Persona
I looked at apps that target similar users to see what features were available, what are some industry standards, and what is missing in the problem space.
Task Flow
.png)
Using the following user story:
As a Pregnant Patient, post pictures and comments related to my pregnancy so that my doctor can monitor small changes.
I mapped out the actions users will take, the screens they will see, and any system decided that the task may need.
Exploratory Sketches
Using a variety of pages and screens for inspiration, I came up with different sketches for my design.
In order to access their photos, the user needs to give permission. For the photo access screen, I looked at how this pop-up presented itself in various apps. I used these ideas to sketch out three possible ways I can design the pop-up using apple standards.
Final Sketches
I put together my chosen sketches to have an idea of the flow before starting my digital wireframes.
Usability Testing
In order to test the usability of the app I tested the product with 5 different users. The objective was to observe how they would naturally interact with the product.
The purpose of the app was not clear from the profile page.
​
-
Most participants knew how to look through the pictures, although some did not realize they could scroll through.
​
-
All participants knew how to navigate forward in the process.
​
Participants expressed they would have liked a confirmation of their posting and the option to post not only pictures.
Design Changes Based on User Feed Back
Using the feedback from my user testing, I started to make changes to my prototype.
​
One of the changes was to indicate that users can post both text posts and pictures. Some testers were very open about not always wanting to post pictures.
​
I made sure that I changed my prototype to show that the users DID actually have the freedom to post questions or updates without pictures.
Next Steps
-
Conducting feasibility research on how/ if it can be implemented in the United States Medical system
-
Conducting Research for Doctors ( Another set of users)
Key Learnings
-
Looking for UI inspiration in order to make informed product sketches
-
Sketching multiple ideas for screens in order to see which one might work best with the target user to design
-
Using Figma as a tool to create wireframes and an interactive prototype
