Week Eight Findings

October 26 — November 1

Looking at Existing Material

At the start of this week, we decided to do some research on existing apps that work similarly to what we want to do with our volunteer app. Because our app has a couple of different functions, such as training, providing resources, connecting volunteers with eachother, and helping to facilitate signing up for shifts, we decided to organize the different apps we found into a venn diagram:

In addition, we also did some research into existing volunteer apps. While we looked at some others, like “One Today” and “Kiwanis International,” we focussed on “GiveGab.” While we weren’t able to find “GiveGab” on the app store, we were able to read some articles on it, and look at their website. Not only does “GiveGab” help nonprofits, communities, and volunteers to manage and promote their efforts, but it also provides a social space where people can share what they’re doing and connect with eachother. Volunteers create a profile, can search for specific opportunities based on their interest, log hours, and share photos or reflections, making volunteering more accessible as well as social. Since we’re doing something similar but in terms of healthcare, we found the social aspect of “GiveGab” particularly interesting.

Interview: Rehabilitation

We also started to interview patients. We talked to a CMU student who had recently broken his leg, and he spoke to us about his experiences at UPMC, and the process of rehabilitation he went through. One of the main things he brought up was a feeling of isolation, and a lack of emotional support in the hospital and at his various appointments, as it felt like the doctors, nurses, and staff would come in to do their job, and then just leave. He also felt that this put an emotional burden on himself, as well on his mother, who traveled to Pittsburgh in order to take care of him.

Next Steps

During our work time on Monday, we plan to flesh out our ideas further, and to work on user flow for the app.