Laboratory Corporation
of America
Re-building the patient experience
Role: Experience Designer / 2010-2012 UX Lead
Cross team collaboration
My contributions.
Lead UX Architect for team-effort next-gen information services portal, services, activity focused, and mobile applications for use by pathologists, physicians and their patients. Partnered with product management, business analysis and development teams and with Microsoft Healthvault integration teams to enable and implement the creative vision, and branded user experience behind Lab Corp's four major web, mobile and client product offerings: Pathways, Pathways Virtual Image - designed to improve pathology workflow and generating reports; the first-to-market Beacon laboratory test ordering system; Lab Corp Beacon: Patient - a patient-centric system for securing lab test results in "Right to Know" states; and IRIS (Integrated Results Information System). From initial hire as a solo UI/UX designer, actively recruited the user interaction, user experience and multimedia design talents that would eventually grow the single role to a team of 10.
Born out of necessity.
LabCorp Information Systems (LabCorp IS) management was exploring innovative ways to expedite the patient lab testing and results process; streamline the workflow of phlebotomists, pathologists, physicians and optimize lab testing turnaround time.
Through the initial interviews and feedback received from healthcare providers, doctors, pathologists, phlebotimists, and SMEs and in partnership with the product managers and business analysts, we established a company-wide collaborative effort for creating a full-cycle suite of integrated lab test results delivery system. We discovered the critical activities by following the path of a single test and single patient / test case. There were numerous areas in which speed and efficiency and the patient experience were the crucial issues to be resolved. The proposed solution from SMEs, the business analysis team, UX and the IS design team was to explore and upgrade the technologies across multiple application workflows.
Within a year the UX design team grew from two to ten, and we established a collaborative-agile dynamic, which enabled representative users and subject matter experts to walk through and approve proposed concepts as well as join the design and development team conversations around requirements, user stories, goals and objectives. We also partnered with the user experience and integration teams at Microsoft and Microsoft HealthVaultTM to design and implement and joint-creative vision for the patient portal experience.
Test order entry
Pathways, Pathways Virtual Image - designed to improve pathology workflow and generating reports;
Pathology reporting
Vision and create a first-to-market Beacon laboratory test ordering system enabling physician oversight, throughout the testing process expedient results thereby optimizing the overall patient experience.
Patient test results delivery
Vision and create a first-to-market mobile patient-centric system for securing lab test results in "Right to Know" states.
The Challenge
Lab Corp, the nation’s largest provider of diagnostic laboratory services sought to expedite test results turnaround and productivity and integrate order entry, pathology and delivery systems, as well as optimize the patient experience.
The Patient Journey
Personas
"We looked at what everyone else is doing, and none of us were winning."
"We needed to care about the full
cycle of patient care and resulting."
"The patient experience is not the only gap."
Patient journey mapping is an opportunity to turn your patients’ experience during every stage of their
healthcare will help build their confidence and trust.
Gaps
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Appointment process and wait time for lab test results and Inpatient care
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Customer service and lack of follow-up resources for self advocating or caregiving.
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Needs and preferences are unmet. Patients who have a negative experience are 95% less likely revisit your a health provider and might typically inform nine to 15 other potential patients about their experiences.
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Exchange of patient information and coordinating care is a top challenge. It builds frustration and is often due to factors like confidentiality or incompatible systems. Red flags in communication, since patient-provider information is essential for understanding patients’ health and resolutions. Excha
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Misalignment or misunderstanding of patient needs. Most patients are unaware of the relationship between their medical condition and symptoms.
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Supporting patients during the post-treatment stage
Insights
80% of the patient experience is involves waiting: for appointments, for medical care, for lab visits, test orders, pathology and results. In 2008-2011, For example, a typical wait for cancer test resulting was around two weeks.
Pathologists are under daily pressure to produce test results from approximately 50 up to 100 slides or samples. Each case is often comprised of 2-3 blood draws or 4-5 slides to be viewed, and up to 1000 words are entered or recorded into the test reports. While their workflow steady or increasing, their performance was often hindered by the dated and cumbersome nature of the medical test resulting platforms.
Cancer and OB-GYN test ordering and resulting presented the especially challenging problem of the slow process and turnaround.
The patient, pathologist and provider experiences will all benefit from streamlining healthcare workflow and by upgrading the usability and functionality of online patient portals, websites, and mobile apps to put more control in the patients’ hands, increase patient flow, and cut operational expenses.
Physicians perform a variety of information-intensive processes, however their average 1:1 time for a patient visit or 'encounter' is limited to
around 10-15 minutes.
After a healthcare professional diagnoses the patient, they suggest treatment. After receiving the treatment, patients have to live with the new lifestyle, including medications, physical therapy, counseling, etc. Support is in demand for patients during post-treatment stage by monitoring their post-treatment life, identifying problems, and helping discover ways to solve these problems.
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Ideation & Wireframing
Low fidelity mockups (Reporting)
Architecture
Early brand concepts for the LabCorp Patient Portal, initially in partnership with Microsoft HealthVault.
Use Case 1
PATHOLOGIST
"Reduce test results processing time from 2 weeks to 48 hours."
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SOLUTION
Design pathology applications around the behavior and need for speed and efficiencty.
Use Case 2
HEALTHCARE PROVIDER
"Create a test ordering form that can be completed in less than 10 minutes."
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SOLUTION
Understand the tactical and time-conscious nature and workflow of provider encounters.
Use Case 3
PATIENTS & CAREGIVERS
"Make test results readily accessible to patients via a security web-based or mobile platform."
SOLUTION
Provide a more value-driven patient experience, since they are at the core of the product mission.
Style guide
OB/GYN Pathology Early Concept
New Brand Exploration
Keywords:
Caregiver and family-friendly
Trustworthy and secure
Knowledgable
Patient-centric
Warm, friendly, welcome
Final designs
Data visualization
Patient Results Snapshot View
Provider Experience
Printable Reports
Before
After
Customized Reports
Results
LabCorb was the first in its industry to create a full cycle, seamless system for medical lab test resulting through integrated tools for pathologists, for generating reports and billing; for healthcare provider order entry and results; and direct-to-patient electronic lab test results delivery. Pathology case productivity and ease of use was significantly improved, and as a result we drastically shortened the timeline from test order to delivery, and ultimately, the ability for healthcare providers and physicians to provide quality care to the patients they serve.
Patient Experience
Stand-alone solution
