Babies born prematurely and with complications are the most fragile patients, and their parents are in the most vulnerable position possible. Critical decisions must be made quickly to improve the odds for survival and long term health. But with no tools available, parents are left to trust their healthcare providers and hope for the best.
I lead the strategy, research and design of this project. I delivered research findings, wireframes, prototypes, visual designs and a visual identity system.
Sketch. Axure. Photoshop. Keynote. Powerpoint.
Parents need a tool that synthesizes their baby’s data in a way they can easily understand and then act upon. Likewise, doctors want a tool that enables them to be true partners through enhanced communication.
Design an app that allows them to check all of their child’s progress, current data and a host of relevant resources all in one easy to use app so they are completely informed and armed with the right questions before they see the Doctor.
With the wide adoption of electronic medical records (EMR) and more comprehensive electronic health records (EHR) systems, the data required to empower parents is finally available.
I performed qualitative online user testing as well as in person interviews to obtain real user insights. This provided immediate feedback to guide my design decisions, enabling me to effectively collaborate with the stakeholders before building.
Most moms we heard from wanted the milestones of their child’s development more than anything.
Track progress along their providers plan of care and know what to expect along the way.
Quickly learn what elements of their baby’s health and progress are important and how to interpret the hospitals data.
Improved productivity. Physician to patient communications are more effective and less time consuming with visual aides, remote face time eliminates logistical challenges
Reduced Risk. Engaged patients and parents pursue litigation far less frequently in the event of undesirable outcomes
A provider value-add to parents, enhancing reputation. Also leads to improved occupancy rates
The next step for me to gain more insight for this project was to look at the competitors. The key take away from this was that most of the competition was focused on the the enterprise applications for the hospitals, whereas my client wanted to focus more on the moms and dads coming into the NICU.
After I had a good idea what the competition was looking like, I wanted to create a map of how I thought the app should flow. It was imperative that the user’s journey be simple and easy to use because in the hospital waiting rooms there doesn’t need to be any more stress than there already is, for anyone.
I wanted to send the stakeholders a prototype that would use animations, drop-down widgets (with lots of data) and swipe gestures that simulated the app the way I visioned it. So I used AxureRP to make this happen. I also used this prototype for the first round of user testing to get quick feedback
The data from the hospitals was a big part of this project. I began experimenting with data visualization. It makes complex data digestible and easy to understand. And business folks love charts, so I find myself speaking a familiar language.
The visual design for this project was guided by my love for color theory and a good dose of user feedback. The moms that we tested said the colors that were too feminine or masculine would be undesirable. My challenge was to mix a gender neutral color that didn’t favor either sex, yet was still soft and calm. After dozens of color palettes, the client and I decided on a these colors. The moms like them as well.
