STC usability assessment
Timeline: Two weeks
Role: Junior User Experience Designer
THE CHALLENGE
The user experience team at Focus21 was contacted by Scientific Technologies Corporation (STC) to provide a usability assessment of the current POCT platform. The final deliverables included a recommendations document, an updated style guide and a map of the current user journey.
THE PRODUCT / CONTEXT
Point of Care Testing (POCT) is a platform owned by Scientific Technologies Corporation (STC) that manages Walmart patient vaccinations. Walmart pharmacists use the POCT platform for three primary functionalities. Each functionality works in synergy to help physicians meet their goal of providing an easy and efficient vaccination service for the patient. The three functionalities are as follows; a database that stores patient information, a tool to record patient vaccinations and a tool to schedule pharmacist availability.
PROBLEM
The current workflows and UI components create roadblocks for Walmart pharmacists when managing patient information.
USABILITY ASSESSMENT AND REVIEW
To identify the current pain points in the users workflows, two UX designers and I conducted an analysis of the original website. We each individually reviewed the site and noted down any areas for improvement and changes that need to be made. Afterwards, we shared our findings and worked together to determine overlapping themes that could be addressed to the client. At a high level the five key reoccurring themes were: Stying, Navigation, Tables, Microcopy and Components. During this process we also ranked the recommendations according to what would be the most beneficial update for the user.
Through this analysis, we developed a sorted list of issues that helped set the direction of the usability document, style guide and workflow. At this point, I began working individually on the workflow map, and collaboratively with one other designer on the usability document.
TESTING OUR SOLUTIONS
Given the tight deadline, it was out of the project’s scope to find participants to conduct usability studies. As an alternative, I turned to relevant user experience articles and case studies to gain insights and, verify my assumptions. Some examples of resources I used include the Nielsen Norman Group, Google Material Design and the WCAG 2.0 web accessibility guidelines.
As a team, we also conducted an informal Q&A session with POCT customer service representatives. By talking to a customer service rep, I gained insight regarding what issues were a primary concern for the user.
DOCUMENTATION
In the final documentation each recommendation was assigned a value from our predetermined issue severity scale. The importance of this, was to provide the client with direction by starting with issues that would immediately alleviate problems for the user. The scale was as follows:
To communicate the issue and its corresponding recommendation, I structured each recommendation as follows:
Description of the issue: To explain why it is a problem
Relevant screenshot: To display the issue and where it is located in the system
Recommendation: To communicate what can be done to improve or change it
Relevant resource: To back up the claim and provide the client with a resource for more information
WORKFLOW DIAGRAM
To provide a general outline of the information architecture and the user’s journey, I carefully followed the navigation links, buttons and hyperlinks, to map out the overall workflow. The aim of this was to provide a helpful resource for systematic thinking and future workflow rearrangements. For confidentiality, the contents of the workflow have been blurred (sorry).
RESULTS
The final result was a 38 page usability document, a workflow map and a style guide. As for my individual contribution to this project, I was able to work closely in developing the document and the map. The deliverables were well received by the client and are now in the works of implementation.
RETROSPECTIVE
Due to the nature of the project, I had to challenge myself by adjusting my design and research process. Unlike other UX projects, in which I would work from conceptualization towards product realization, this time I had the opportunity to work on a developed product that had already entered the market. Thus, to approach the problem I had to remodel my design process and look to different resources for research.
The usability analysis also shed light on why it is important to have a coherent information architecture, systematic navigation, well-written microcopy and unified UI components. For example, working with UI component issues helped develop my understanding of systems-based thinking and the importance of forming component-functionality relationships.
If it were possible to visit this project in the future, I would love to verify the assumptions that were made in the recommendations document with user studies. This would help to validate the importance of certain usability issues, debunk others, and highlight any issues that were not spotted by my team or I.