Research and App Design to
help foreigners seek
medical attention.
Project name: Stethy
Project Summary
I did a qualitative research study and created a prototype for a medical app for foreigners.
Timeline
3 months
Responsibilities
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User Research
-
Experience Design
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Prototype & User Testing
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Visual Design
Project Premise
I took on this project in my Advanced UX class in Fall 2020. For this project, I was given the task to spearhead the research process to find users’ pain points, and to design a solution for them in the medical field.
Process
Problem Discovery
Given the theme of “Health, Medicare, and Personal Wellbeing,” I brainstormed potential users and problems with my classmates.
I came up with the assumption that busy professionals may find unpackaged medication around their house and wonder what it was for and when it was bought.
Assumed Audience
Brianne Busy
About
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Always busy at work or socializing
-
Doesn’t spend much time at home
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Can’t afford to take a day off
Assumption
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Self medicates once feeling unwell
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Keeps medication together at home
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Wants to easily identify medication when needed
Learning Goals
General health
How often do you fall sick every year?
What do you do when you get a cold?
Are you allergic to anything? If yes, what do you do to handle it?
General Thoughts on Medication
What do you think about medication in general?
Do you keep medication in your house? If so, what kind and where?
When was the last time you took medication? What was it for?
Leftover/Random Medication
What do you do with leftover medication?
Have you ever taken the wrong medication? What did you do?
Have you ever gotten confused between different medications? What did you do?
Pill Identification
Have you used any apps/websites to identify pills?
If yes, what did you like? What did you not like?
If no, what do you normally do to identify pills?
User research
Wait a minute… After interviewing 5 different users, I realized that my assumed problem was not true.
Assumption
Wants to easily identify unknown medication when needed
Reality
Keeps all the packaging for medication
Throws unknown medication away
But they all did not like to see doctors in the US unless absolutely necessary.
New Target Audience
With an updated set of learning goals, I restarted the user research process.
New Target Audience
Francis Foreigner
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Didn’t grow up in the US
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Lives in the US on a Student or Work visa
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Plans to stay in the US for about 5 years
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Dedicates most of her time to school or work
New Learning Goals
General health & Visitation Frequency
How often do you fall sick every year?
How often do you go to the doctor’s?
What are the most common reasons?
Insurance
Are you familiar with terminology like “deductible”and “co-pay”?
Do you know what your insurance covers?
Finding a Doctor
What was the process of finding a doctor like back home?
Have you tried looking for a doctor in the US? What was it like?
How do you pick a doctor out of a list of doctors?
Alternative Medicine
Do you prefer alternative medicine or western medicine?
Can you think of any home remedies or lifestyle guidelines that alternative medicine promotes? Do you follow them?
9
Interviewees
700+
Insights
“The US medicare system is so d*** hard. I have to find a doctor through my insurance and it’s such a pain in the ass.”
- Kat, on finding a doctor
Research Findings
I recorded my insights on Miro, then grouped similar ones together.
Learnings & Findings
Persona
Francis Foreigner
Independent & Career-focused
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Age 19-30
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Currently in the US on a Student or Working Visa
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College educated (or pursuing a college degree)
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Lives in San Francisco Bay Area
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Does not live with their family
Behavior & Activities
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Focused on work or studies
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Delays going to the doctor until absolutely necessary
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Rather look for home remedies and self-medicate than go to the doctor
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Has a stash of medicine they brought from their home country
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Feels that finding a doctor and going to the doctor’s is a hassle;
it’s tedious and frustrating
Needs & Goals
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Wants to search for a symptom and find help
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Wants an easier way to find a doctor they can trust when they absolutely have to go to one
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Doesn’t want to spend too much time on going to the doctor
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US medical system is very different from what they’re used to in their home country
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US medical system is complicated and expensive
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Insurance website is hard to navigate
Problem Statement
Francis Foreigner is trying to find quick ways to recover from illnesses, and easily get medical care when needed. They prefer home remedies but aren’t sure what actually works. They are scared to seek medical care because they think the US medical and insurance system is complicated and expensive, and are worried about communicating clearly with medical professionals.
Preliminary Sketches
I started brainstorming and sketching different ways to solve this problem.
Concepts and Feedback
Concept 1: Available Time
This was a straightforward scheduling app. The user selects a time, and the app shows which doctors are available. They then click into the doctor’s information and make an appointment.
Feedback
Like the calendar picker, but redundant since time is already picked on first screen.
Would like a way to add to personal calendar.
Concept 2: Symptoms
Focusing on the problem at hand, this concept tries to suggest a doctor or remedies for the user based on the symptoms they’re experiencing.
Feedback
Like the option for remedies instead of just doctors.
Didn’t know where to tap, the image didn’t seem tappable.
Concept 3: Conversation
Stethy, a talking stethoscope, asks the user questions about what they’re looking for, their location, their availability, and their insurance. Through filtering, Stethy suggests a list of doctors.
Feedback
Like that it lightens up the feel of a medical problem.
What should the user do with the sliders if they have no availability on some days?
Service Blueprint
To get an overall picture of the app, I created a Service Blueprint. This helped me see through the scope, logic, and functionality before worrying about the design.
Wireframing, User Testing, and Iteration
Through user testing using low fidelity wireframes, I was able to improve designs.
Symptom Picker
Lets Foreign Nationals visually communicate their problems.
Home Remedy Option
Allows Foreign Nationals to look for treatments if they insist on not seeing a doctor.
List Filters
Further helps Foreign National to find a doctor they are comfortable with.
Synthesizing findings
Testing Analysis
Learning 1: Wasn’t sure what the slider does
Before
Unsure of what slider does
What if it were a
sex-based issue?
After
Line drawings help with interactivity
Added buttons to pick Male/Female
Learning 2: Word choice
Before
What is “remedies”?
All-caps can be hard to read for non-native English speakers
After
Updated copy to say
“Home Treatments"
Adjusted typeface to use regular casing
Learning 3: Overwhelming design
Before
What day is today?
Too many options
After
Highlighted “today"
Only the selected day’s availability will be shown
Visual Design
Created a clear and cohesive design system for Stethy
Outcomes and Learnings
If I had more time or could change things, I would rebrand this app as a school or company’s health app, or a plugin in an insurance company’s app.
Key Outcomes
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User research with over 700 insights
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User testing on wireframe showed multiple areas of improvement
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Developed high fidelity prototype based on feedback
What I learned
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Make sure to validate user problesm through research
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Meet deadlines, but still be flexible with the timeline