MedKit
Bridging the Gap in COVID-19 Communication
Summary
The Problem.
At the height of the coronavirus pandemic, people became frustrated with the lack of information about vaccinations. As information regarding COVID-19 circulates, people are unsure of who and what to believe. As the year anniversary of the lockdowns quickly approaches, people are cooped up and more eager than ever to receive a viable solution for ending the pandemic.
The Solution.
The MedKit app is a vital communication platform for coronavirus related news and events. Users will be able to receive real time updates from credible sources, vaccination and testing scheduling, and more. This app makes it easy for users to share information with loved ones, as well as access community and mental health resources.
Roles.
UX researcher & designer
Tools.
Figma, Miro, Adobe Illustrator, VS Code
Empathizing
evaluating user needs
Surveys
We surveyed 82 people and found that:
A majority of respondents (81%) have not caught COVID-19
25% have not been tested
27% have been tested 5+ times
Over 50% of respondents know 1-5 people who have contracted COVID-19
Furthermore, we found that many people were frustrated with
Wide spread misinformation
How politicized covid-19 issues are in the United States
Lack of info/clear direction with the vaccine roll out
User Interviews
We wanted to get a better sense of how the pandemic has affected people’s wellbeing, attitude, and relationships, as well as their thoughts about how the pandemic has been handled in the U.S. We also gauged how engaged people were with coronavirus news and updates.
We interviewed five peers, ranging from 23-56 years of age, and found that while they were anxious about contracting the virus, they were even more concerned about passing it to an at risk friends or family member. During our user interviews, we also found that people were frustrated with the misinformation and confusion surrounding the pandemic and vaccine roll-out, and felt disconnected from others and activities they cherished in their pre-pandemic life.
Definition
our user persona, josh!
Like many of the participants in our user research, Josh is frustrated with the lack of communication with regards to covid-19 vaccine information. He hears differing information and it is difficult for him to navigate and find information on the CDC website. He is looking for a solution that would help him and his non-tech savvy parents.
defining the problem
Currently, people are struggling to find accurate and reliable information about COVID-19 vaccinations and tests. As cases have increased over the holidays, people need a quick and convenient way to access accurate information to keep them and their loved ones safe. How might we create an app that provides users with a reliable source of information about COVID-19 news, testing, and vaccinations, while providing them with mental health support and care?
visualizing the process
In the storyboard below, we visualized what solution would address user’s needs for clear communication, an easy way to register for vaccines and covid-19 testing, and other covid-19 resources.
Ideating
We created three sections for this app to address our user’s needs, as well as their pain points:
Health Spot
Locate testing/vaccine centers close to you
Sign up for tests/vaccines
Access test results
Check your symptoms
Info Hub
Daily Digest with important information at a glance
Real time news from vetted & reliable sources
Share articles through app, sms, email, or social media
Community
Find COVID approved activities
Join support groups
Access self care and mental health resources
Prototyping
user flow
We established a simple user flow to give us a better idea of how the app should be structured. Based on our users needs, we prioritized the covid-19 vaccine and testing appointment scheduling feature.
low - mid fidelity prototype
usability testing
We had users complete three separate tasks during usability testing: (1) complete the onboarding process (2) find a LA Times article and share it via SMS, and (3) sign up for a covid-19 test in Los Angeles. We learned that while our onboarding process was straight-forward and intuitive, there were issues reading text due to the poor color contrast. For our articles section, we learned that using different font-families for headers and the text, makes it easier to skim through the information. Lastly, we found that the appointment registration page had some redundancies that made the flow confusing.
medkit style guide
We used what we learned from the usability testing to create the style guide for an app that provides medical information in an approachable way.
iterations based on usability test data
We made further iterations based on the data. Changes were made to:
Maps & Location Services:
Created a section for users to manually input addresses
Added filter so users could customize the distance radius
Home Page:
Included information on ICU bed availability
Added key for graph
Bottom Navigation:
Decreased size to match standard
Added active state icons
Added text labels
hi-fidelity prototype
View the desktop site that my team member, Jacob, made, here.
Conclusion
next steps
Build out feature to access test results.
Connect with non-profits and support groups through the community page.
Iterate “dark mode” to improve accessibility.
Build out feature for state and county information and data.
Add CDC tracker of real time vaccination rates.
Create Registration Flow for class sign-up in ‘Community’.
Expand business model with premium classes and health screenings.
final thoughts
It was a refreshing experience, researching and designing a solution for an issue that affects all of us globally. This project pushed me to ask more questions and think more creatively as a UX researcher.
