athenahealth - epocrates
UX Research Intern
June 2021 - August 2021
Context
As part of my internship, I led several research studies for their point-of-care medical app, epocrates, which is used by over 1 million health-care professionals across the country. I was I was part of the epocrates UX Team which included 4 UX Designers and 3 UX Researchers. I was 1 of 2 UX Research Interns for the summer.
Challenge
During my summer internship with the epocrates team at athenahealth, our UX Research team encountered a significant challenge: enhancing the home screen experience within the app. This was particularly crucial as healthcare professionals frequently accessed this section, and optimizing it presented an opportunity to streamline navigation, increase efficiency, and provide valuable patient-related information.
The primary goal was to refine the home screen to ensure it was not only easier to understand but also quicker to navigate, while also incorporating pertinent information that healthcare workers could readily utilize in their patient interactions. Though I'm unable to share specific screenshots due to confidentiality, below is an overview of some key projects I spearheaded during my three-month tenure at athenahealth:
Project 1: Quantitative Study on epocrates App Effectiveness
Objective: Utilizing Qualtrics surveys, I conducted a comprehensive quantitative study to evaluate the effectiveness, usability, and satisfaction of the epocrates app, with a specific focus on the home screen. The aim was to gather quantitative data to understand user perceptions and identify areas for improvement.
Approach: Through carefully crafted surveys, participants were asked to provide feedback on various aspects of the app's usability and functionality, particularly regarding the home screen.
Outcome: The quantitative study provided valuable insights into user perceptions and preferences regarding the home screen of the epocrates app. The data gathered helped identify features of the app users used most often, as well as features they rarely used or didn't understand. These results helped inform future iterations and improvements to enhance the user experience, including a feature that was later developed that allowed users to customize what they saw on their home screen.
Project 2: User Interviews for Home Screen Navigation Testing
Objective: I conducted in-depth interviews with healthcare professionals, particularly doctors, to evaluate the global navigation of the recently developed home screen within the epocrates app. The goal was to gather qualitative insights into how users interacted with the app in their daily workflow and identify opportunities for enhancing navigation and usability.
Approach: Using a structured interview guide, I engaged participants in discussions about their usage patterns, frequency of app utilization, and the features they found most valuable. I used affinity mapping to flesh out major themes, gather insights, and present results to the product team.
Outcome: The user interviews yielded valuable qualitative data regarding user behaviors, preferences, and pain points related to home screen navigation. The insights gathered informed iterative design decisions and guided enhancements to optimize the user experience. Being able to triangulate my findings from my quantitative study and qualitative study allowed for easier communication with the product team about future design recommendations. Aligning these user insights with wider business objectives such as increased user engagement and satisfaction also demonstrated how the impact of UX Research could drive business growth.
Project 3: Card Sorting Research on Customer Support Workflow
Objective: In collaboration with the Customer Support team, I designed a card sorting research plan to evaluate epocrates app's customer support workflow. The focus was on addressing common issues users encountered when seeking help within the app.
Approach: Working closely with the Customer Support team, I developed a card sorting exercise to assess user preferences and expectations regarding the organization and accessibility of help resources within the app. The research plan involved recruiting participants to perform the card sorting task, followed by analysis to identify what users' mental models were throughout this workflow.
Outcome: The card sorting research provided valuable insights into how users categorized parts of the app as well as their preferences for accessing help within the app. By aligning these insights with business objectives, such as reducing support ticket resolution times and improving overall user satisfaction, we were able to optimize the customer support workflow.
Learnings
I learned that in a fast-paced research environment, being able to pivot the research goals and plans to meet timelines is not only very challenging but fairly common in the industry. Flexibility and a proactive mindset are essential for navigating evolving project requirements and deadlines effectively.
Moreover, I gained a deeper appreciation for the importance of using both quantitative and qualitative data in UX research. Balancing the use of these two approaches is crucial, as they complement each other and provide a more comprehensive understanding of user needs and behaviors. Integrating quantitative metrics with qualitative insights allowed me to advocate for research findings more effectively, fostering a deeper understanding and alignment across cross-functional teams.
Finally, I discovered that storytelling plays a pivotal role in conveying research insights and driving actionable outcomes. Crafting compelling narratives around research findings enables stakeholders to empathize with users and understand the significance of proposed design solutions. I learned that effective storytelling not only communicates research outcomes but also inspires empathy, aligns stakeholders, and ultimately drives meaningful change within the product development process.
If you'd like to hear more about the projects I worked on, please contact me for more information!