OCTOPUS ENERGY hackathon
How to help users spend green energy when it is cheap and abundant?
PATIENTS FIRST
Learn what your blood test numbers mean and how to improve your health
Role:
UX Strategist, UX Researcher,
UX Designer, UI Designer​
Duration:
3 weeks
Tools:
Figma, Adobe PS
PATIENTS FIRST is a government-led initiative aimed at improving healthcare for patients.
The initiative aims to place people and patients at the centre of healthcare by more deeply understanding patient needs and experiences while improving patient outcomes.
It focuses on improving access to fast and reliable healthcare, connecting patients to all available healthcare services, and supporting patients by providing them with the education, and knowledge they need to make decisions about their health.
WHY BLOOD TESTS?
This is an academic project in the UX Design course at BrainStation whose brief is to think about how the current patient experience in the Healthcare System can be improved. This is a UX Research project focused on usability testing.
In the UK, you would usually see a GP before requesting blood tests, but access to a GP can be difficult and the process cumbersome. Equally, you will always need a GP to read the results for you and this can be a slow process with little feedback given.
DESKTOP RESEARCH
I have realised a Google search on the problem space which directed me to topic-related articles and literature produced by:
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the NHS,
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the British Medical Association and,
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the NIHR - National Institute of Health and Care Research.
“Better communication from doctors about the purpose of testing, and their expectations, could reduce patients’ frustration and lay the foundations for shared decision-making.”
Test reports are not always created with patients in mind and can sometimes be confusing and difficult to understand, especially where there are many different results on the same report.
USER INTERVIEWS & INSIGHTS
I have conducted 4 interviews to understand what were the pain points, behaviours and motivations of the participants regarding the communication with their GPs about their blood test information and how this impacts their well-being to confirm my assumptions.
Participants were selected to represent a diverse mix of ages, genders and occupations.
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The aim was to find common issues around the problem.
INSIGHTS
Communication with doctors or surgeries regarding their tests can be improved as they are not always getting feedback or accurate information.
Reading and interpreting their blood test results is a big challenge for people because they are not familiar with the jargon and meaning of the numbers.
People value having a quick way to access their blood test records.
How might we help patients understand the information shown on their blood test results?
MEET JOHN CONNOLLY
Based on patterns found during the primary and secondary researches, I have created a persona which helped me empathise with the target user of my future digital solution.
John Connolly helped me write and evaluate user stories which in turn have suggested application features and functionalities.
JOHN'S STORIES & EPICS
In order to identify needs for features and functionalities in the future digital solution, I have created a few user stories based on John's goals and motivations.
Here is John in his own words:
1 - "As a patient, I want to easily schedule a blood test appointment online, so that I can conveniently fit it into my busy schedule".
2 - "As a patient, I want to have the option to schedule virtual consultations with my GP or healthcare provider, so that I can save time and avoid long wait times at the clinic".
3 - "As a patient, I want to book an appointment in a lab myself, so that I don’t have to wait to be seen by a GP".
IN SUMMARY: John wants to quickly schedule blood test appointments
And he carries on:
1 - "As a patient, I want to receive quick and easy-to-understand blood test results, so that I can quickly assess my health".
2 - "As a patient, I want to have access to a simplified report that explains the jargon and provides interpretations of my blood test results so that I can better understand my health condition".
3 - "As a patient, I want to be able to view my blood test results in an easy-to-understand graphical format, so that I can quickly identify any areas of concern".
IN SUMMARY: John wants to receive easy-to-understand test results
HELPING JOHN ACHIEVING HIS MAIN TASKS
1
Book an appointment on the next available slot in a selected health clinic
2
Go in the app, access the test results, visualize them and look for a detailed explanation of specific data.
UI INSPIRATION
I have researched different apps - healthcare related or not - and collected visual elements, to inspire my future Patients First app, for the necessary screens the user needs to have to complete the 2 tasks.
I looked at minimalistic screens and elements such as buttons, input boxes, date pickers, maps with few colours and a streamlined design that gives a clinical impression whilst still being welcoming and engaging.
MAKING IT VISUAL WITH HAND SKETCHES
Looking at John's task flows and getting inspiration from many visual elements from different apps.
You can find below the selected hand sketches of all the screens necessary for John to perform his tasks.
TASK 1 - BOOK A TEST
TASK 2 - CHECK THE LAST TEST VALUES, LOOK FOR EXPLANATION & GET TIPS TO IMPROVE HEALTH
WIREFRAMING & TESTING
I have wireframed in mid-fidelity all the screens I needed for my interactive prototype, based on my solution sketches.
I designed the screens and created a prototype in Figma with all the interactions the testers would need to have when testing it.
USER FEEDBACK & PROTOTYPE ITERATIONS
