STUDIO 3: SYSTEM - Helping Hands
Project overview
Project Overview
Our mission is to enhance the lifestyle of individuals with hypertension through a multifaceted intervention. This initiative aims to boost self-management by promoting awareness, engagement in healthful activities, adherence to treatments, and regular health status monitoring. By improving interactions with healthcare providers and fostering community ties, our project seeks to support and uplift the lives of those affected by hypertension. Our approach included conducting interviews with patients under Dr. Sheldon Tobe's care at Sunnybrook Hospital, absorbing their experiences and struggles to shape an intervention that meets their needs effectively.
Team members
Baria Abu Ghoush, Zahra Aboutalebi, Helen Bae and Salam Roman
My Role
I contributed to research, developed personas focusing on older adults, gathered data, prototyped the website, and designed the brand identity and graphics.
Introduction
Hypertension, a leading cause of cardiovascular diseases, affects up to 45% of North America's population, being a major cause of mortality in Canada. Lifestyle modifications are crucial for managing hypertension, which, if uncontrolled, can lead to severe health complications. Socioeconomic status and insurance coverage significantly influence hypertension management.
Healthcare facility partner
C-CHANGE (Canadian Cardiovascular Harmonized National Guideline Endeavour): A guideline process for primary care practitioners.
CIRCULATE HEALTH A design research study sponsored by Sunnybrook since 2017, focusing on clinical information, patient education, and addressing self-management challenges through a systemic change approach.
RESEARCH PROCES
Previous Findings: Identified the impact of socioeconomic factors, cultural differences, age, health literacy, and tech accessibility on hypertension management.
Primary & Secondary Research: Included literature reviews, interviews with five patients, and a workshop with healthcare professionals.
Key Issues Identified
Patient Education: The challenge of pursuing health goals with limited medical knowledge.
Management of Comorbidities: Collaborating with healthcare providers to manage multiple health conditions.
Self-Management: Overseeing medication plans and health information, like blood pressure records.
Lifestyle Modification: The difficulty of changing behaviors negatively impacting health.
Community Support: The importance of close-knit community support for comprehensive care.
Primary Research Question
How can we empower and motivate individuals with hypertension to actively engage in their care and self-management journey?
Project Objectives
- Develop an inclusive platform for education, empowerment, and motivation.
- Enhance health literacy regarding hypertension and healthy living.
- Encourage lifestyle modifications for better health outcomes.
-Foster community engagement for improved healthcare communication.
DESIGN PROCESS
Thematic Analysis & Journey Map: Utilized to understand the healthcare navigation challenges and inform project direction.
Personas: Crafted to represent diverse user needs and inform service solutions tailored to unique user challenges.
Journey Map
To gain deeper insights into the challenges faced by health seekers navigating the healthcare system, we created a visual map that outlines their journey. The map is based on information gathered through various sources, including interviews, literature, and workshops with Dr. Tobe and Dr. Mohammad. By illustrating health seekers' experiences, actions, emotions, and thoughts, as well as related proposed interventions, the map provides valuable insights that can inform our project.
Personas
We have created personas as part of our research to represent different types of users. These characters have provided valuable insights into users' needs, experiences, behaviors, and goals.
Personas enable us to better understand patterns in research and synthesize the needs, experiences, behaviors, and goals of different types of people. By utilizing personas, we can ideate and design comprehensive service solutions that address the unique challenges and opportunities of each user type.
Website prototype
