Role

User research, Competitive analysis, User testing, UX/UI design

Team

Solo UX/UI designer

Duration

September - October 2022 (6 weeks)

Project background

Ontario is does not have a standardized method of scheduling nurse work shifts. I designed an MVP for a mobile application where I aimed to standardize how hospitals in Ontario schedule shifts for nurses.

Problem

According to a user survey I conducted, 100% of nurses would prefer to view their work schedules via a mobile application. Unfortunately, one of the most common scheduling method is by paper.

Challenge

How might I reduce the frustration nurses have related to their work scheduling?

Research goals

01. Determine the market demand for an app that helps nurses manage their work schedules.

02. Determine pain points, gains, and goals nurses have related to work scheduling.

03. Determine what features the app should include.

Determining the market demand

Through my user survey, I determined that 100% of nurses would use a mobile scheduling app if one existed for their workplace.

“... in an era of mobile devices, having to find a desktop to check schedule is not convenient.”

“I would use a scheduling app because I think it will be convenient, useful...”

“...super convenient and nowadayseveryone has a phone, not everyone has a computer.”

Nurse goals and pain points with scheduling

01. Wishing they had more comfort in swapping their shifts with coworkers.

02. Paper copies of the schedule were inconvenient to use.

03. Nurses wanted their workplace to have an app for scheduling.

Feature prioritization

The competitive analysis uncovered that SafeShift’s top competitors did not allow users to submit shift change requests for management approval.

User journey map

To determine opportunities to make my app MVP stand out, potential solutions, and necessary features, I created a user journey map.

User flow

The user flow details the decisions and possible paths a user could make when using SafeShift to submit a shift change request for management approval.

Sketches

I created sketches to explore various solutions and communicate my ideas to the developer I collaborated with. Next, I utilized the sketches to create mid-fidelity wireframes based on the feedback the developer provided.

Design system

I created a design system to establish branding and ensure consistency when creating the high fidelity screens for SafeShift. This design system to communicate the various states and dimensions of the UI elements needed for front-end development.

High fidelity wireframes

With the high-fidelity wireframes, I was able to communicate the fine details of the app’s UI to the developer I worked with. This helped us ensure the developer could code the app within time and technical constraints.

Usability testing with prototype

I conducted moderated, remote usability tests over Zoom to identify areas for improvement.

View first prototype

What needs to be improved?

There were three key changes identified through user testing:

01. Allow users to specify their availability to work overtime.

02. Add a user interaction for the work calendar that allows users to view the date details.

03. Add more imagery and icons to the “Request Confirmation” screen.

Challenge #1 users wanted to see date details

100% of the users attempted to interact with the work calendar when attempting to change their shift time. Users expected to state their availability for overtime work and view the shift or date details.

Solution #1 implement feature

To allow this, I added a pop-up view for the date, if the user were to click it.

Challenge #2 text-heavy screens

80% of users felt the original screen was too text-heavy. This caused the user to become overwhelmed and increased the time spent on this screen.

Solution #2 addition of iconography

To reduce the amount of text, I utilized icons to convey information to the user.

Challenge #3 designing within legal constraints

100% of hospitals have policies surrounding shift changes.

Solution #3 addition of disclaimers

To ensure all nurses are aware of that shift change requests may take 24 to 48 hours to process, a disclaimer was added.

Final design

After all the priority changes were implemented, I had my final prototype.

View final prototype

Key Takeaways

Collaboration With Developer

It was important for me to keep the developer in the loop as I went through my various design stages to ensure my design was technically feasible.

Policies and Legislations

The healthcare industry is tightly regulated in Canada. Each province has different policies and legislations.

Conduct Primary Research

Since my app was targeted for registered nurses living in Ontario, I realized I had to gain a deeper understanding of their pain points with the way their hospitals currently schedule their shifts.

SafeShift