Overview
Problem
Preeclampsia (high blood pressure during pregnancy) is difficult to detect and therefore, is often diagnosed too late into the pregnancy with pre-term birth as the only treatment option.
How might we help mothers monitor their health throughout their pregnancy so they can detect and prepare for preeclampsia as soon as possible?
Nuora
Minimizing Preeclampsia Risks through Early Detection
Deliverables Smart Blood Pressure Cuff & Mobile App Prototype
Client/Sponsor Tactile
Duration 12 weeks (AUT2019)
Team Solo Project
Role UX Researcher, UI/UX Designer, Industrial Designer
Tools Figma, Sketch, Principle, Marvel, Rhino, Keyshot
Solution
Nuora is a smart blood pressure cuff that helps mothers minimize the harms of preeclampsia through at-home detection and blood pressure management.
Weekly Updates
Daily Vitals
take blood pressure
Sleep Position Tracking
Risk Detection
Care Team Messaging
track sleep positions
take the SP Test
Design Process
Research
Goals
Methods
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Analyze current detection methods
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Discover emerging technologies in high risk pregnancy care
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Understand the user journey of a pregnancy with preeclampsia
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Secondary Research
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Competitive Analysis
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2 Interviews with preeclampsia patients with & without known risks
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1 Interview with an OBGYN
Insights
1) There are many methods to monitor/protect against preeclampsia, such as:
a) tracking blood pressure & weight
b) the Supine Pressor Test, which can detect risks
c) side sleeping.
2) Existing blood pressure cuffs overlook other signs of preeclampsia.
*Products can better detect preeclampsia if they also consider factors such as weight, swelling, etc.
3) Mothers with unknown or low risks often disregard their blood pressure until they are diagnosed.
"Nothing was done to assess me for preeclampsia. One midwife said I was low risk but preeclampsia doesn’t care if you are low-risk."
-Mother with no known risks
4) Mothers who work closely with their doctors have better pregnancy outcomes.
Define
Design Opportunities
1) Allow users to monitor with a variety of methods as preeclampsia shows symptoms beyond just blood pressure.
2) Build on the existing functions of blood pressure cuffs to tailor better to preeclampsia symptoms.
3) Encourage earlier monitoring to mitigate the harms of preeclampsia, no matter the user's risk.
4) Help users stay connected with doctors throughout the pregnancy.
Design Principles
Holistic
Effortless
Accessible
Empowering
Blood Pressure Cuff Design
Inspired by the form of existing cuffs, Nuora's design supports features beyond blood pressure monitoring, addressing preeclampsia-specific concerns.
1st Iteration
I structured the app based on monitoring methods, with a separate feature for doctor messaging.
I then visualized the flow into UI sketches for user testing.
Goals
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Brainstorm content to show on the home page
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Consider how to provide instructions for recordings
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Explore ways to display sleep position data visually
Feedback indicated that the sleep chart, home page, and test process needed improvements.
Feedback: This sleep results graph is difficult to understand.
Feedback: The participant preferred the baby updates to be shown on the home screen.
Feedback: Clicking "Next" after each step during the tests created too much friction. The participant also suggested adding a progress bar.
2nd Iteration
I applied this feedback to create some low fidelity mock-ups.
Goals
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Redesign the sleep habit chart
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Refine home screen
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Incorporate past measurement charts
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Add a progress bar during recordings
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Refine visual design
Feedback suggested the home screen and the Supine Pressor Test feature can be improved.
Home Screen: The participant suggested that separating each update into separate tabs (baby's health, mother's health, tips) would make the screen more organized.
Supine Pressor Test: The participant wanted a way to ensure she was doing the Supine Pressor Test correctly, either through visual or audio feedback.
Refinement
I applied this feedback to refine the UI/UX for the final prototype.
Goals
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Reorganize the home screen into separate tabs
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Incorporate visual feedback during the Supine Pressor Test
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Refine visual design
And refined the visual UI with a design system that communicates serenity.
Solution Details
Prior to Nuora: User Persona & Previous User Journey
Gina is a mother, with no known risks, expecting a healthy pregnancy...
but, she is blindsided when she is diagnosed with preeclampsia.
Frustrations
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Unprepared for her diagnosis
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Wished she knew to monitor her symptoms earlier
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Feels guilty that she could have done more to prevent this
Needs
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Knowledge of her preeclampsia development
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Motivation to record her blood pressure earlier in her pregnancy
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A convenient way to monitor other factors contributing to preeclampsia
Preeclampsia was diagnosed too late, leaving Gina unprepared and defeated.
First trimester leading up to diagnosis
Final Solution & Improved User Journey
With Nuora, Gina can monitor her symptoms early, feeling reassured and prepared leading up to her diagnosis.
Because she addressed it earlier, she is diagnosed with milder preeclampsia.
First trimester leading up to diagnosis
Features
Weekly Pregnancy Updates
Encourage users by reminding them that consistent, healthy habits lead to healthy pregnancies.
blood pressure cuff
Weight and Blood Pressure Monitoring
Daily monitoring becomes more effortless by combining health trends, past records, reminders, and communications into one system.
accelerometer (measures angle)
Sleep Position Tracking
Help users maintain a healthy blood pressure by encouraging side sleeping.
accelerometer (measures angle)
blood pressure cuff
At-home Supine Pressor Test
Guide users through the Supine Pressor Test to detect preeclampsia risks.
Care Team Messaging
Users can reduce in-person appointment costs and COVID exposure by contacting their doctors through the app.
Nuora makes symptom monitoring/management convenient and accessible, helping mothers prepare for and mitigate the impacts of preeclampsia as early as possible.
Success Metrics Moving Forward
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Task Success Rate:
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Because the SP Test is fairly unfamiliar to users, are they able to complete the test?
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Are users able to record their weight and blood pressure?
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Task Completion Time: How much time does it take for a user
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to message their doctor after a risk has been detected?
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message their doctor after an abnormal measurement is recorded?
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User Acquisition:
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How many users, especially those without known risks, are monitoring their health and making an effort to maintain a healthy blood pressure?
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Retention:
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How often do users take the SP Test?
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How often do users track their sleep and blood pressure?
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Reflection
Considerations
Because Nuora stores medical data, it must protect user data and ensure it is used ethically. Also, to obtain high user acquisition, it should be implemented into an existing telemedicine system to gain the trust of patients and doctors, and to better organize/share records.
Possibilities
Nuora can make healthcare more convenient, cost-effective, and safe, especially during the pandemic. Also, due to it's simple components and self-monitoring capabilities, it has the potential to become accessible to mothers in remote or developing areas.
Challenges & Takeaways
Initially, I struggled deciding which users to design for: those with known risks or without. I realized that if Nuora successfully encourages mothers without known risks to monitor early, it will be effective for mothers with known risks as well. Designing for a specific user can lead to a product that works for other users as well.
Next Steps
With more time, I'd like to add a component that can track edema (swelling) or protein in urine since those are also key in detecting kidney damage caused by preeclampsia.
