Introducing Healthcare + Design
A glimpse into the complex challenges designers are facing at healthcare startups and how they are overcoming them
For the past month I have been interviewing designers who are working at healthcare startups. I have learned so much from these interviews and want to share them with other designers and people interested in the challenges being faced in US healthcare, specifically in regards to design.
You can find the video and transcript of the first interview I have published with Rebecca Ackermann from Amino here or follow along on the Medium publication where I will also be posting each new interview I release.
If you are a designer at a healthcare startup please feel free to reach out to me on Twitter and I would love to hear more about what you do and possibly feature you on an episode!
Why interview designers?
It’s a common consensus in America that our healthcare system is broken. There are differing opinions on how to fix the many challenges in healthcare but one can’t ignore the obvious — healthcare needs to be redesigned. From poor customer service to unreadable medical bills to hospitals still using software from 2003, healthcare is old and unusable. It was never designed for the digital age in which we now live.
I believe the small but growing amount of companies using design strategies/thinking in order to approach the vast problems in healthcare will eventually create a better healthcare system in America. I want to highlight and learn from the designers at these companies brave enough to start chipping away at the monstrous problems currently facing healthcare in America. I want to highlight startups that are giving design its rightful seat at the decision making table.
What is the format of each interview?
I have recorded and transcribed each conversation I have had with each designer. They vary in time from 30 min to 45 min. I ask them questions about their design process and how they overcome the many challenges when designing digital, physical, and service products in the healthcare space. I also ask them to tell me about their career journey and ask for advice for young designers, like myself, looking to enter the healthcare tech industry one day.
I have already interviewed:
- Rebecca Ackermann from Amino
- Izac Ross from Collective Health
- Renato Valdés Olmos from Honor
- Frank Guzzone from Oscar
- Are you next? Reach out to me on Twitter!
Who’s behind this?
My name is Hayden Mills. I’m a product designer from Indiana who will be starting my Human-Computer Interaction Design masters program at Indiana University in the fall. I have a deep passion and curiosity for healthcare. I aspire to one day work for or create a healthcare startup that will help fix the healthcare problem in the US and empower people to live healthier more informed lives. Up until this point, I have found a lack of resources and inspirational material online for healthcare tech and design. Healthcare + Design is my attempt at creating that resource.
Now go start learning from the amazing Rebecca Ackermann who works at Amino as a Senior Product Designer!
Thanks for reading! Feel free to reach out to me on Twitter with questions or any feedback.
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