Enhancing Elder Care through UX Innovation
An in-depth analysis of developing an accessible and engaging health tracking platform for elders and their international families.
Client
Care Mate
Year
2024
Role
UX/UI Designer
Overview
The Care Mate project aimed to develop a mobile app for elder care, prioritizing safety and assistance for seniors and their caregivers. As the UX designer, my role was to lead design efforts for a user-friendly experience.
As India’s population ages, families are scattered across the globe, leaving their elderly loved ones in a vulnerable position. The distance makes it challenging to provide immediate care during emergencies, manage medications effectively, and monitor health regularly. Care Mate steps in to fill this gap, offering a solution that brings peace of mind to families and ensures elders receive the care they deserve.
Roles & Responsibilities
As the team lead, my responsibilities encompassed:
- Guiding the Design Process:
Setting the project direction and ensuring alignment with user needs and project goals. - Collaborating with Team Members:
Working closely with the team to brainstorm ideas, conduct research, and refine design concepts. - Overseeing Project Milestones:
Developing timelines, coordinating tasks, and monitoring progress to ensure project milestones were met.
Challenge
The aging population faces challenges in maintaining independence due to health, safety, and medication management issues. There is a need for innovative solutions to empower seniors while alleviating concerns of caregivers and loved ones.
Design Process
Research
Research Interview notes & insights
User Personas
Affinity Map
This Affinity Map is based on user research and insights gathered from interviews, surveys, and observations. It highlights key areas of focus for the design strategy of the healthcare app.
User Flow
This User Flow is designed to provide a seamless experience for the Elder user of the Care Mate app, focusing on key interactions and functionalities tailored to their needs.
It ensures easy navigation, clear communication, and efficient response during emergency situations.
Information Architecture
Service Design – Emergency Trigger
Sketches
Prototyping
Prototyping – Digital Wireframes
Prototyping – Digital Wireframes
User Feedback
Positive Feedback:
- The medication reminder feature is a game-changer for me!
- The emergency alert feature is a lifesaver. I feel much safer knowing that help is just a button press away.
- I love being able to track my health vitals in one place. It gives me peace of mind and helps me stay on top of my health.
- The virtual companionship feature is wonderful. I enjoy the interactions and feel less lonely, especially when my family is far away
Constructive Feedback:
- Can we have more customization options for the home screen?
- I’d love to see more local resources for seniors in the app.
- The app occasionally crashes when I’m entering new appointments.
- I accidentally triggered the emergency alert a few times. Maybe adding a confirmation step would help prevent this.
- The medication reminders are helpful, but it would be great if I could customize the notification sound to something more pleasant.
- Including more language options would make the app accessible to a wider range of users.
Feature Requests:
- It would be helpful to have a ‘share’ option for health reports.
- I wish there were filters for community events based on interests.
- I love the idea of connecting with other seniors through the app!
- Having a forum or chat feature to discuss health topics would be fantastic.
Accessibility Feedback:
- Accessibility options like voice commands would be a great addition
(Challenges faced in adding voice recognition hence removed this feature in MVP)
Metrics and Results
- Medication Reminders: 50% of users found it useful
- Medication Reminders: 50% of users found it is difficult to update and annoying sometimes
- Medication Reminders: Sponsors can take action if medication updates are not visible in the app.
- Health Vitals Tracking: Almost (100%) sponsors agree that it gives transparency on parents health while they are away
- Net Promoter Score (NPS): 8 (On a scale of 0 to 10) “On a scale of 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend the Care Mate app to a friend or colleague?”
- 75% Accidental Triggers: Added a 5-second timer before emergency trigger to reduce accidental activations.
- Accidental Triggers reduced to 20%: after adding 5-second timer before emergency trigger to reduce accidental activations.
- User Onboarding Enhancement: Updated to OTP with mobile number for simpler and more secure onboarding.
- Virtual Companionship: Addressing user feedback to improve virtual companionship features for a more engaging experience.
Key Learning
The UX design for the Care Mate project significantly contributed to its success by addressing the initial problem statement of enhancing the safety, well-being, and independence of elderly individuals. Through user-centered design principles, the app streamlined emergency assistance, medication management, and communication tools, resulting in tangible benefits:
- Clear, intuitive navigation is crucial for elders to feel comfortable using the app
- Features like large buttons, clear labels, and minimalistic design elements enhance usability
- Elder users appreciate medication reminders but prefer simplicity in inputting medication details
- Options for generic medication reminders without detailed input of names and dosages are preferred
- Features like scheduled calls and virtual companionship are valued for reducing isolation among elders.
- Vitals tracking, such as pulse rate, blood pressure, and temperature, is highly beneficial for elder care.