DearlyCare
Smarter Support for Caregivers
UX Case Study
Why a caregiving app?
As a caregiver and patient advocate, I’ve navigated the frustrating maze of healthcare platforms like MyChart. Those challenges sparked my passion for creating better, more intuitive tools to support patients and caregivers.
Business Research
~53 million unpaid caregivers in the United States.
As you get older, prescription use and family caregiving responsibilities increase.
There is a strong market need for effective caregiving apps, which would drive potential subscription and B2B partnership revenue from healthcare providers and insurers.
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
MARKET DEMOGRAPHICS
INVESTMENT HYPOTHESIS
User Interview Goals
How do people manage their personal medical information?
- What tasks do they want (or avoid) in a medical app?
- What frustrations do they have with health apps?
- What are common views on exercise, stress and caregiving in health apps?
Median age: 62.5 years old
PARTICIPANTS
- Frank, 75 retired clinical psychologist
- Vicki, 65 hospice nurse
- Marsha, 55 substitute teacher
- Irena, 55 pianist
AFFINITY MAP GROUPINGS
- Communication with Doctors
- Medical needs of participants
- Need for multiple doctors
- Caregiving for family members
- Exercise, stress management
User Interview Insights
for healthcare and medication management
Doctors, not patients, decide
how communication is organized – by phone, fax, message or app.
Doctor's offices were
unreliable in responding to messages
from participants through medical apps.
Participants feel indifferent about medication management,
but they all have chronic health conditions that require prescriptions.
Health is more than medication
management to participants. Exercise, socializing, and stress management all play a role in smartphone health app use.
Patients are often overwhelmed
by multiple doctors, changing meds, and different hospital system apps.
All female participants are caregivers
to dependent family members. That means they are responsible for the health of multiple people.
