Article
Designing for Health Equity - D&DA Winner 2022 - Cancer Care Community Hub
Designing for Health Equity: My human-centered design approach help define and transform a analog cancer support platform to better serve people of color through personalized onboarding and community coaching. This case study reveals how thoughtful UX design not only earned trust from an underserved population but potentially saved lives by making critical cancer journey information accessible and actionable.
The Challenge
Women of color with cancer were experiencing significant disparities in treatment quality compared to white women. These disparities stemmed from multiple factors, including insurance coverage limitations and other systemic issues, which often resulted in critical steps being skipped in their care process. Additionally, there was a lack of education about standard care protocols and limited community support for these patients to effectively advocate for themselves.
Our Approach
I spearheaded the design of an educational and community support platform:
Patient-Centered Research: Conducted in-depth interviews with women of color affected by cancer to understand their specific needs, challenges, and support systems
Experience Design: Developed personalized user journeys that accounted for different cancer types, treatment stages, and health literacy levels
Community Architecture: Created discussion guidelines and interaction frameworks that fostered a supportive, informative environment while respecting privacy concerns
Technical Transformation: Partnered with Salesforce to convert what had been an inefficient, manual email and Excel-based process into a streamlined, scalable community platform
Empowerment Focus: Designed features that allowed women to both learn about standard care protocols and share their experiences, including the ability to rate and review healthcare providers
Impact
162% Community Growth: Exceeded initial targets, building a thriving support network
Enhanced Healthcare Literacy: Educated participants about the standard of care they should expect, empowering them to recognize when they were receiving substandard treatment
Improved Advocacy Skills: Provided resources and community support that helped women confidently advocate for appropriate care
Healthcare Provider Accountability: Created a feedback mechanism that offered valuable insights for improving doctor-patient interactions
Recognition of Excellence: The project was recognized with a prestigious D&DA award for its innovative approach to addressing healthcare disparities
