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Competency D
Competency D
Identify user needs, ideate informatics products and services, prototype new concepts, and evaluate a prototype's usability.
Identify user needs, ideate informatics products and services, prototype new concepts, and evaluate a prototype's usability.
Introduction
Introduction
The informatics field thrives on innovation, and at the heart of this lies understanding user needs. During the INFM 204 Human Centered Design course, the core focus was researching and understanding user needs, prioritizing product innovation, prototyping design concepts, and evaluating the usability of concepts. The course focused on web design in relation to user needs. However, the techniques explored apply to all technology-based interfaces, such as mobile applications, point of service, and other interfaces. There are critical steps in the user-centered design cycle, specifically within the context of informatics. The user experience (UX) is the highest priority in design today and reflects the desire for intuitive and emotional connections within the interface. Usability is critical for a smooth experience with high satisfaction. Informticians connect people with technology and use technology to improve satisfaction and outcomes. This competency is critical, and especially within health care, user needs are paramount to reduce errors and frustration and ensure accurate and timely data is documented and accessible by only those who should have access. To truly comprehend user needs, we must entirely focus on the UX (Flanders, 2024). This involves conducting user research using surveys, interviews, and focus groups to identify user pain points, tasks, goals, and existing workflows (GeeksforGeeks, 2023). Within informatics, this is crucial for recognizing current challenges and opportunities for improvement. When it comes to ideating products and services, creativity is vital. The work completed in INFM 204 involved brainstorming techniques to generate ideas and prioritize features based on their impact and feasibility. While the clients were fictional, developing complex user stories to address specific user needs led my group to develop innovative solutions that met the user needs. Prototyping wireframes and defining essential features are essential for the UX, and with feedback surveys and data, usability can be further refined, and prototypes can be updated accordingly. The course taught me the importance of iteration and continuously refining a process or system based on user feedback. The human-centered design principles I learned are valuable, and taking into account the needs and viewpoints of others ultimately leads to more effective communication and collaboration.
Evidence 1
Evidence 1
Marin Council of the Boy Scouts of America Website Redesign
I selected this group project as evidence for Competency D as it documents the necessary steps for the best UX and user interface (UI) in web design. The group was tasked with identifying problematic elements of an existing website and overall hauling the website to increase usability, findability, cohesive design elements, and create a satisfying responsive user experience. Extensive research on users is documented, and user testing is done to refine all needed changes to improve engagement and develop an intuitive site that is highly useful. My contributions included overall content writing and editing of the paper, research using card sorting, user persona research, and user journey mapping. Additionally, the group worked on all aspects of prototyping and reviewed wireframe prototypes. Using the design software Figma and our creative ideas, the group proposed a new user-friendly web design.
Additionally, in my evidence here, I have added the PowerPoint proposal, which went along with the paper. My role was writer and editor, and I managed the PowerPoint's design aspects to ensure the slide deck's pleasing aesthetic. The deck consists of slides illustrating planning the research, ideating the design, prototyping, testing, and finally implementing the new design. Additionally, ongoing recommendations discuss security updates, using data to determine user behavior, responding to user feedback, and periodically reviewing trends to maintain a modern user interface. This was a large project that I spent many hours working on, and the group was motivated to address every concern to provide the best user experience with our new design. This project is an excellent example of this competency, especially as most informatics and technology-based interfaces will need revising from a prior version rather than a brand-new application or interface.
Evidence 2
Evidence 2
Heuristics Report Card for Craigslist.com
I have chosen to submit this heuristic report, which I conducted on Craigslist.com. Heuristic reports, valuable tools in web design and informatics, are based on established usability principles. They are often used along with additional user research to gain a comprehensive understanding of user needs. As this evidence demonstrates, heuristic reports provide a systematic and reliable approach for evaluating the user interface of a website or informatics product. By applying these heuristics systematically, informaticists can confidently identify issues, gaining reassurance in the process. Heuristic reports highlight common usability pitfalls that hinder user experience by analyzing a website or product through this lens.
Conclusion
Conclusion
This competency is an essential skill in the informatics field and healthcare industry, as UX design knowledge plays a critical role in user satisfaction and adherence to legal requirements aswell as ethical considerations. Enhancing user satisfaction with intuitive interfaces and custom accessibility and ensuring compliance with HIPAA, patient privacy, and FDA regulations is critical. The benefits of user-centered design in healthcare include improved patient outcomes, increased efficiency for healthcare providers, and enhanced patient engagement.
Investing in UX/UI design for healthcare applications prioritizes user satisfaction, legal compliance, and ethical considerations. The growth of wearable health devices and telehealth needs an enhanced understanding of UX to ensure compliance and user satisfaction (Team Designlab, 2024). I believe that informatics will spur innovations in healthcare technology interfaces, and through this, healthcare delivery will become more accessible and secure and provide better patient outcomes. As the healthcare industry continues to use technology, well-crafted interfaces will be essential in ensuring that services are efficient, accessible, and personalized to meet individual needs. UX design is set to transform healthcare by playing an increasingly pivotal role in adapting services to the evolving healthcare landscape (Team Designlab, 2024). This competency emphasizes the importance of UX/UI design in creating streamlined, user-friendly, and personalized healthcare experiences, and I believe the evidence showcases some of the knowledge and skills I learned.
References
References
Flanders, C. (2024, April 17). Designing for the human experience: putting people first in design. Medium. https://medium.com/@MobileAppDesigner/designing-for-the-human-experience-putting-people-first-in-design-1306c8dc16fd
GeeksforGeeks. (2023, October 11). Importance of UIUX design. GeeksforGeeks. https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/importance-of-ui-ux-design/
Team Designlab. (2024, April 25). UX Design in Healthcare: Challenges and Innovations. Designlab. https://designlab.com/blog/ux-design-healthcare-user-experience
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