Why make Design for the Heart?
Heart failure is a growing healthcare problem in Canada. Over 700 000 Canadians over the age of 40 are currently suffering from heart failure, while 50 000 Canadians are diagnosed with it each year. 1 in 2 people in Canada are touched by heart failure in some way (Heart & Stroke Foundation, 2020).
People experiencing HF have distinct and specific needs that exist in addition to that of patients more generally. Special considerations include the chronic nature of the illness, the higher average age of HF patients, the role of family members and caretakers, and the overwhelming breadth of information available, at varying levels of accessibility.
Design in Healthcare
Given the social and economic challenges faced by healthcare service providers, design knowledge, innovation tactics, and methods could contribute significantly as a force for change in healthcare (Design for Health, 2017).
In general, the role of design in healthcare can include:
- Improving patient safety (e.g. creating better consent forms for complex medical decision-making)
- Promoting evidence-based practice (e.g. the inclusion of both robust science and patient voices in the creation of products, architecture, and services that target them)
- Encouraging systems thinking and collaboration to identify and tackle complex challenges (e.g. gathering relevant stakeholders–clinicians, patients, communicators, strategists–to identify and address systemic issues within the healthcare system, like accessibility of care in remote communities, while recognizing the holistic roles of home, work, and community)
Currently, there is a distinct lack of accessible guides for designers and communicators, especially with visual elements, that address designing and communicating for people experiencing heart failure, whether as a patient, a caregiver, a friend, or a family member.
Communicators within the healthcare space have a range of resources available; some do not use many at all while others consult multiple at various stages of their creative process. A common problem identified by many communicators and designers is the lack of time, resources, or technology to complete their projects to the best of their ability.
To address this issue, the intent of this website is to provide an open-access, curated repository of resources, as well as well-developed, research-based communication and design guidelines, that provide guidance on how to approach designing for and communicating with people living with chronic heart failure.
What is available on D4H?
There are two types of resources available on D4H:
A repository of research-based communication and design resources, gathered from communicators and designers currently working in healthcare.
Both are the result of a literature review spanning a wide range of published literature, media audits of existing heart failure resources, Â and interviews with communications and design professionals currently working in healthcare. The resources used to create D4H are available on the References page.
Who is D4H for?
D4H can be for many different types of health communicators, designers and otherwise. ksdjfhjklsh
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How can a novice be introduced effectively to the concept of human-centered design (HCD)?
A novice designer in
healthcare—
Goals might include:
- Learning about the theory behind human- and user-centered design, especially for healthcare
- Understanding the specific design needs of individuals experiencing heart failure
- Finding design resources available for creating useful communications for heart failure patients
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How can the specific needs of people with lived experience of heart failure be conveyed through the resources presented?
An experienced designer
in healthcare—
Goals might include:
- Understanding how to apply familiar design workflows and previous design knowledge to the healthcare context, especially for patients with lived experience of heart failure
- Finding health- and heart failure-specific resources to use, learn about how they slot into more general design resources
‍How can the website be made accessible to those without a strong visual background?
A communications
manager in healthcare—
Goals might include:
- Improving knowledge of design-based processes and solutions, especially visuals-based–perhaps to better understand or refer to visuals-oriented team members
- Finding research-based evidence to support co-creation and stakeholder involvement
- Understanding end-users through research-based resources, when there are time and budget constraints that restrict stakeholder involvement
How will D4H remain useful?
A key aspect of D4H is the recognition that ongoing updates are needed for the guidelines and resources to remain useful. Knowledge and best-practices change as research is conducted and new information comes to light, and the intent of this website is to create a space where the presented information is reviewed and new information is posted as they emerge.
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To support the accuracy and utility of D4H, we encourage users to provide feedback on its use through the following form. This way, D4H can grow and improve not only from published literature, but real-world use cases.
D4H is successful if it helps in promoting:
- Improving patient safety (e.g. creating better consent forms for complex medical decision-making)
- Promoting evidence-based practice (e.g. the inclusion of both robust science and patient voices in the creation of products, architecture, and services that target them)
- Encouraging systems thinking and collaboration to identify and tackle complex challenges (e.g. gathering relevant stakeholders–clinicians, patients, communicators, strategists–to identify and address systemic issues within the healthcare system, like accessibility of care in remote communities, while recognizing the holistic roles of home, work, and community)
