App feature
In an effort to push healthcare beyond its traditional scope and innovate the current landscape of Telehealth, we designed a messaging service that provides treatment for minor low-level, non-urgent conditions by discreet text messaging called E-Visit.
Context
Intermountain Health is a national hospital that has 385 clinics and 33 hospitals in the West primarily in Utah, Idaho, Nevada. In 2022, Colorado-based SCL Health and Intermountain Health merged, adding to it's expansion in the Intermountain West.
Timeline
2022-2023: 1 year
ROLE
UX Designer & UX Researcher
Tools
Figma, Adobe Creative Suite, Jira, Usertesting.com, and Amplitude
Team
1 Buisness Analyst, 3 Engineers, and 3 QAs'
Prodcut
E-visit Web and mobile
Intermountain Health's Virtual Care has been in expansion since 2016 before the pandemic with Connect Care. However, the pandemic significantly increased the use of virtual services, with patients seeking more flexibility in affordability, availability, and accessibility. This led to the design of a faster mode of communication — messaging.
Objectives
Our North star
Optimized Screening
Build E-Visit experience by optimizing exclusion criteria to obtain informative answers from users.
Rapid Assessment
Reduce the actual and perceived wait times for patients to find out if they can participate in or be excluded from the E-Visit.
Journey Streamlining
Develop a streamlined flow for essential data collection to optimize patient information throughout the E-Visit process while integrating tools to improve their experience.
Constraints
challenges
Documentation Gap
The project had minimal prior documentation and outdated software (Invision). Earlier research focused on user demographics, so I conducted a discovery phase to understand the problem, scope, and virtual care users, especially post-COVID-19.
Design Revision
The information architecture needed updating, and pages were redesigned. Based on new research, we implemented these changes and added the new Intermountain branding during the iterative process.
Rapid Feature Prototyping
The plan was to release with quick follow-ups for business needs, but high demand for features like self-pay and insurance in payments led to rapid iterations and prototyping.
Research
User testing
Before any integration, I gathered qualitative and quantitative data on the current design scope and identified user issues with our virtual care. I conducted an unmoderated usability test of the current design and user flow using Usertesting.com.
Research
key insights from User Testing
Balancing showing vs telling
We learned that users tended to feel confused about what an E-Visit entails and need more visual and complementary content for product adoption.
Clarifying Choices
Users viewed the “E-Visit” as another virtual telehealth option and were not confident in selecting an options listed without haptics or guidance.
Locking in Fundamentals
We found that users prioritize having key details—such as time, cost, and process—available upfront, even before considering their options.
Wireframing & Prototyping
Branding
After conducting research on the preliminary designs, we were informed that Intermountain Health would be rebranding. We were provided with a mini style guide for the upcoming rebrand to give feedback. I used this style guide to implement and preview the brand in our E-Visit feature. I provided insights to update the design system for the rebrand and helped our team leverage this rebrand to update the information architecture and revise the copy.
Wireframing & Prototyping
Information Architecture
Previously, the architecture was part of a third-party integration called Symptom Checker, designed to be concise for that specific task flow. Since we were creating a new feature, E-Visit needed a new entry point for users to interact with a different flow. Therefore, we needed to update both the user flow and task flow.
iNSURANCE & PAYMENT FEATURE
camera & Media
Interaction Design
In the second phase of E-Visit, we developed a photo-based insurance verification feature, allowing users to upload their insurance information via image capture. If no insurance was verified or linked to their account, users were directed to select a form of payment method.
Before
Users shared that more visuals would help them understand the product better, but they also felt the visual hierarchy was a bit cluttered with too much extra information.
After
We minimized the copy to enhance clarity and brevity, adjusted the visual hierarchy to introduce a distinct informational box for key details, and positioned actionable elements prominently at the top to improve discoverability and engagement.
Before
Users suggested changing the wording, as they preferred browsing their photo library over taking a new photo. They also felt the visuals were too small for easy selection on mobile.
After
We revised the copy based on user feedback, reduced redundant text, and improved visual hierarchy by enhancing element sizing and strengthening visual cues for links.
Design Validation
Usability Testing
I conducted a usability test and a tree test in two iterative phases. The second round of testing was informed by insights from the initial usability test, allowing us to assess how updates to E-Visits impacted user experience. These tests yielded valuable insights that highlighted the need for further expansion of virtual care. Despite the significant flaws and the need for quick adjustments, I recognized that the work on E-Visits was just one piece of the puzzle in the future of technology in healthcare. In hindsight, these findings laid the groundwork for a future project known as 'On-Demand Care,' aimed at creating a comprehensive vision for virtual healthcare.
Reflection
Impact
Increase of E-Visits by 509% that was driven by COVID-19 growth within 2022-2023.
Refelection
Takeaways
Power in Pivoting
Even with a heavy workload, our flexibility to adapt provided strength and agility, enabling us to stay aligned with our goals and take clear, effective actions.
Research Paves the Path
Innovative paths are rarely paved, which is why research served as our guiding compass, helping us identify where we needed to adapt to better meet our users' needs and achieve our goals.
Valuing Iterations
Iterations saved time and yielded superior solutions, enhancing the efficiency of the development process and addressing overarching business needs.
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