CONTEXT
MFA Products of Design | SVA
Design Research with Morris Swope
Fall 2017

TEAM
Antya Waegemann, Runshi Wei & Tzu-Ching Lin

MY ROLE
User Interview, App Design

How might we simplify the complicated nature of treating chronic illnesses?

THE CHALLENGE

What would healthcare look like in terms of DIY? The project began by exploring DIY components such as self-monitoring, journaling and DIY hospital kiosks. Further research navigated the project towards a focus on patients of chronic illnesses. After in-depth interviews with many patients with Type I Diabetes, Parkinson’s and Epilepsy, it became clear that there were many different steps and medications these patients had to partake in everyday. However, patients with Type I Diabetes were already greatly involved in DIY healthcare.

From here the project centralised on understanding the experience of Type I Diabetics, specifically looking at their daily routine and onboarding process to explore an opportunity for intervention that best serves them. Seeing how many different devices each patient had to carry around with them every day, reordering separately from separate pharmacies, we were overwhelmed and it was a clear pain point for them. This is where the Diabetes Kit began, was built and evolved through many iterations and feedback from our users. 

THE OUTCOME

JOIN is a mail-order diabetes learning and supply kit—a comprehensive onboarding and experience for Type I diabetics whether they have just started their journey or well into their fight. 

INSIGHTS FROM USER RESEARCH

Self-medicating is a repetitive, complicated, and frustrating experience.

“We had to become mathematicians,
[because] there isn't one formula for all.”

— An experienced diabetic           

Complexity vs. Invisibility

The more we learn about the patients' life, the more we see how complex their ritual is while they just simply want to live their life. The moment they were first diagnosed, they were given "bags and bags of supplies" along with in-depth self-care reading materials to learn on their own. They had to become mathematicians, calculating the right doses and remembering to take them at the right time. They further need to keep track of each medication/product and know when and how to re-order each one.

“Bags and bags of supplies.”

How might we make daily treatments and medications less intrusive to the point of invisibility? With this paradox in mind, we saw an opportunity in creating a medication and supply kit for the onboarding of diabetes that not only provides all the medication and supplies in one place, but also gives in depth tutorials and information on how to monitor diabetes. That is when we incorporated a mobile application into the solution. 

JOIN is a comprehensive onboarding
and lasting experience for Type I diabetics

whether they have just started their journey or well into their life together with diabetes.