We have mapped and designed the process of medical appointments and issuing eDocuments for a new version of online application drEryk. The development of the company’s products in accordance with User-Centered Design is a response to the needs of the developing medical software market.
drEryk – software developers and community of enthusiasts
drEryk S.A. is engaged in the creation of modern IT solutions for the healthcare sector. It has a rich product portfolio and 18 years of experience. The solutions created by drEryk S.A. are used by thousands of users – doctors and other healthcare professionals – on a daily basis. One of such products is drEryk eGabinet application that has been developed with EDISONDA’s participation from the very beginning and allows to manage medical practice.
Project background
drEryk eGabinet is a comprehensive software for both large institutions and small medical practices. The application is designed for the whole range of medical professions: doctors, nurses, registration desk staff, dentists, rehabilitation specialists, medical managers, etc.
However, the main challenge became its usability, as the program had been designed several years earlier mostly for a desktop environment.
It was time for redesign and further product development – new technology, SAAS model, online access, and modern, more intuitive interface.
Goal: improve the patient’s treatment process
The challenge the client came to us with was how to streamline the patient’s treatment process and allow the doctor to focus primarily on the patient, instead of being distracted by complicated program operations. Of course, the changing regulations and requirements of the Ministry of Health and the National Health Fund were also an important aspect here.
At the very beginning of the project, we proposed ethnographic research that we planned to conduct in the natural context of doctors’ work, that is, in clinics and medical centres. Our idea was to create a doctor-friendly solution that would be consulted with them at each design stage.
Application redesign - how did the process look like?
UX research
IDI - individual in-depth interviews with an ethnographer
Strategy
Benchmark, Personas, Customer Journey Map
Modelling
Information Architecture, Screen flow of the processes
UX and UI design
Clickable prototype, Graphic concept, Brand identity
Usability tests
Task-based usability testing
Design system
Developing a library of components
How did we approach the challenge?
Ethnographic research
In addition to conducting individual in-depth interviews (IDI) with physicians, we wanted to be able to observe their daily work. However, for obvious reasons, we did not take part in the ongoing visits with patients (medical confidentiality). However, we talked about the entire process of a patient visit from the perspective of the doctor and the people involved in the process: from registration to the appointment, to issuing eDocuments, to making the next appointment.
The aim of the ethnographic research was to identify the key steps of the process and their natural sequence. But also to learn about the specific use of the desktop program drEryk Gabinet and competitors’ solutions. Another important aspect was to diagnose the factors that bother doctors when using medical software via cloud.
Workshops
During the workshop with the client, we presented the results of our previous work: the main observations and conclusions from the UX research and the user persona built on their basis. We confronted them with the existing knowledge of drEryk’s team, and then together we generated ideas and possible solutions for the doctors’ problems. During the cooperation, we used, among other things, the customer journey map.
Concept of the application
Using the knowledge from research, strategic workshops, and benchmarking, we created an information architecture and screenflow for the most important processes in the application. We also designed the first mock-ups and a graphic concept for the medical appointment process. The results of our work were shared with the product team and then tested with the doctors. We tested both the wireframes and the visual concepts.
The whole patient and appointment context on one screen
The time for a single medical visit, including both the patient interview and filling out the documentation, is about 12-15 minutes. Conclusions from the research confirm that time pressure is quite a challenge for doctors. They expect maximum functionality from the application. One of the greatest perceived values of the drEryk eGabinet application is the ability to see all the elements related to the visit on one screen so that there is no need to scroll and to keep the entire medical record of the patient ‘at hand’. These were valuable insights for us, which probably could not have been captured without listening to the doctors.
We designed the screens to maximally shorten the process and, therefore, the time needed to operate the tool. We also paid a lot of attention to prevent mistakes resulting from haste. All this – according to healthcare professional needs – on one screen.
drEryk brand identity
While working on the visual layer of the application, we noticed the need to put in order the existing visual identification of drEryk brand. We started with a refreshed logotype in order to design a new guidelines and, in the long run, to develop a unified visual identity system for subsequent sub-brands.
Design System
Our experience shows that applications and systems of such scale should be accompanied by a well-designed Design System, created and developed in parallel. Therefore, the foundations of design system were created on an ongoing basis while working on the visual concept. We developed all necessary UI elements together with functional descriptions of their use, and then we implemented them as the front-end layers with pieces of code. The design system not only facilitates the development work, but also shortens the time-to-market of other digital projects using the same drEryk’s design system.
What UX and UI solutions did we use in the project for drEryk?
- The entire visit is on one screen, without scrolling (patient interview, physical examination, diagnosis, recommendations).
- A 12-column fluid grid for the most optimal use of space to present large amounts of data.
- Creation of e-Prescriptions – the most recently issued medications are automatically prompted.
- Ergonomic e-prescription process directly in the application, integrated with P1 platform.
- Solutions preventing work slowdown due to Internet problems (saving drafts, possibility of completing processes at a later time).
- Access to patient history without having to interrupt the visit and issue eDocuments (called up with a single click on the side navigation panel).
- Modern and at the same time clear graphic design of the UI, consistent with the context of use.
- Minimizing the number of clicks – each functionality is designed so that the execution of user actions is as fast as possible.
- Contextual prompts – we use interactive interface elements to prompt and show the right information at the right time.
- Predictable interface – thanks to the application’s consistency and high learnability we can build new functionalities which will not surprise users.
It’s not over yet
After the first iteration of work on the application itself, there was space to refresh the website for the drEryk brand and its sub-brands.
The new image of drEryk required consistent communication, while the UX research and the conclusions from the work during the design process indicated the new business goals for the company.
Therefor, we have also designed a clear and unified portal that presents all of drEryk’s products.
Cooperation with EDISONDA is a guarantee of a professional approach, innovative methods and effectiveness. We are constantly developing our business partnership, and the mutual exchange of knowledge and experience contributes to our success. We carry out ambitious, forward-looking projects in which we can count on substantive and professional support.
