User experience consultancy for digital healthcare
Ethnography and contextual research, usability and user research: putting the user at the heart of technology and service design.
About |
Portfolio
info (at) alextarling.com
Self-management and patient empowerment is one of my themes for the HIT conference presentation.
How can you design a Telehealth project to support patients in managing their own conditions? Moving away from a remote monitoring model to one where patients and clinicians are fully engaged in supporting self management.
For me, its a service design issue - the photo below is one of the Respiratory Physiotherapists working with the Intel Health Guide trial. There’s a strong community focus built into the service model and a commitment to patient education and self management.
I’m presenting at the HIT (HealthInformationTechnologies) conference in Paris on thursday 28th May 2009. I’m doing a piece on the Lothian Telehealth Trial. More information here later!
http://www.health-it.fr/
I work primarily as a User Experience Consultant with a focus on Digital Healthcare. My work involves placing the users of technology at the heart of the design process, exploring the ‘lived experience’ of users in the broadest context of use.
I’ve many years experience and use a wide range of techniques and methods in my work:
- Ethnographic and contextual research,
- Usability testing and evaluation,
- Requirements gathering,
- Card sorting,
- Focus groups,
- Eyetracking,
- Surveys
I’m also an experienced information architect with a focus on user-centred design.
Extensive experience across a range of domains, including digital healthcare, mobile, public sector, web, intranet and e-commerce projects.
More about my recent projects.
Intel Health Guide (ethnographic research & usability studies: digital healthcare)
- A 18-month program of ethnographic research and usability studies. I have been working on prototypes, and subsequently, live field trials for a telehealth solution designed to support patients with long-term conditions living at home. Studies encompass impacts on patients, families and carers, clinicians and social care providers.
Telehealth Market Reviews (interview, desk research, market research)
- An ongoing program of market assessments for Telehealth projects and research activities in the EU
- 2009: assessments of the state of telehealth deployments across Europe for Intel
- 2008: interviews and site visits for a number of leading telehealth pilot trials and projects around the UK
Mobile Clinical Assistant (ethnography)
- Ethnography during a field trial of a mobile wireless tablet device deployed into NHS hospital settings.
- A very successful field trial exploring impacts to work practices of Phlebotomists and ward nursing.
Orange (usability testing: mobile and web service prototype)
- A large user research project to explore and improve the out-of-box, handset and application experience for Orange signature handsets
- Concept and usability testing of an interactive prototype for a new product spanning mobile and web, both with agency Cogapp
Blacks & Millets (usability testing with eyetracking: e-commerce websites)
- Formative usability testing with eyetracking. Exploring customers behaviours and journeys on the existing e-commerce websites for these two high-street outdoor clothing and equipment retailers.
- Outputs of this process are actionable recommendations to improve merchandising via the website, and to optimise cross-selling and conversion.
DirectGov (usability review: public sector websites)
- Comparative usability review of 10 government websites including DirectGov, Businesslink, NHSChoices, and the Foreign Office to capture best practice and key areas for improvement, working with agency Bunnyfoot. The project will help to inform UK government usability guidelines
BBC (usability and conceptual research: News and Sport online)
- Two studies exploring users approaches and behaviours around daily consumption of News and Sports media, with agency What People Want.
- The projects were both formative and diagnostic, exploring gaps and opportunities across the full user journey on a range of popular news and sport websites.
Nokia (concept and usability testing: mobile and online)
- A number of projects for Nokia around the Nokia Music Store and Comes With Music products, with agency What People Want.
- Projects spanned the mobile, online and out-of-box experience using a mix of concept and usability testing.
New Look (usability testing with eyetracking: e-commerce website)
- Diagnostic Eyetracking study of the existing New Look e-commerce website to develop actionable recommendations for optimisation across the whole customer journey.
- Previous projects for New Look include iterative usability testing of interactive prototypes using eyetracking, with agencies Bunnyfoot and Big Light.
- The National Archives (card sorting and user study: website)
- A multi-phased study including group and individual card sorting exercises, user studies and focus groups as part of a process to develop a new information architecture for the UK National Archives, with agency Cogapp.
Other User Experience Projects
- E-commerce: BBC, Not on the High Street, Directory for Social ChangeMobile: Shozu, DoCoMo
- Public sector: Defra, Kettering Borough Council, Brighton and Hove City Council
- Web: FHM Casino, Party Gaming, MSN
- Intranet: Home Office, Surrey County Council
For more information, email info (at) alextarling.com
