This graduation project is performed for the Dutch Medicines Evaluation Board (MEB) in collaboration with VU University Medical Center (VUmc), Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. In many situations pregnant women need to use a medicine during pregnancy, especially when they are under medical supervision at VUmc due to their (history of a) complex pregnancy. For instance to treat an underlying chronic disease or pregnancy related conditions. In every decision about medication use, the necessity needs to be weighed against the potential risks of the medicine, as well as the risks when not taking the medicine for both mother and child. Literature research has shown that pregnant women often overestimate the risks associated with medicines and therefore do not take their medicines as prescribed. Current information sources, such as patient leaflets and online websites, usually stress the risks and show reluctance towards the use of medicines during pregnancy, while they lack the benefits of medicines. User research has shown that pregnant women are very afraid of the potential risks and only want to take a medicine when there is a clear benefit for their child. Usually they have a lot of trust in their gynaecologist and follow their advice to use a particular medicine. However, women easily start to doubt whether their medicine is really safe due to negative information from others or in the media, or because they do not clearly remember the benefits of the medicine. As a result, they seek confirmation and reassurance by searching information via Google or in the patient leaflet, where they often only find unnerving information that increases their concerns. Based on these research insights, the goal was to design a product-service system, including a digital application that informs pregnant women about the use of medicines during pregnancy and allows them to make an informed decision and feel confident to use a medicine during pregnancy. The final design, ‘Mijn Medicijn – Zwangerschap’ is an application that pregnant women can consult at any time when they are in doubt of the safety of their medicine. It provides balanced and transparent information about both the potential risks and the benefits of medicines for the mother and unborn child. This allows pregnant women to understand why a medicine may be important for their situation, which is expected to make them feel more confident to use the medicine during pregnancy. Additionally, the app shows what medicines can or should not be used during pregnancy for a certain complaint or condition. The gynaecologist plays an important role in the design as well, by providing an information flyer and stimulating the patient to use the app. Furthermore, when advising a medicine, the gynaecologist explains the relevance of the medicine by using the same benefit-risk information in a desktop version of the app. An evaluation study with an interactive prototype showed that pregnant women highly value the product service system in general as well as the patient-friendly information, which would support them in making decisions about medication use.

This project aims at improving the experience of children during blood drawing procedure at Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona Children’s Hospital.
Blood test is a procedure that creates stress and anxiety for patients, and it can result in a very traumatic experience for children. This brings other issues that make the blood draw more complicated, therefore, it is important to reduce their fear and anxiety.
A design for experience approach was used to carry out the project, which focuses on the experience of the user and involves the patients and stakeholders in the design process in order to design a relevant solution for them.
The final design proposal consists in a story around the blood drawing procedure. The key purpose of the story is to change the meaning of the blood test into something positive and to give support throughout the process, by giving them some tools to cope with anxiety and fear. This should reduce the need to force and restrain the patients.
The story gives a challenge to the children to complete all the steps of the blood test to get a Superkid badge. Each step involves an element that brings physical and mental benefits. These are thought to strengthen the kid’s confidence, help them to take initiative and to relax.
Reducing the fear and anxiety of patients makes the blood drawing procedure smoother and faster. From the patient’s point of view, this will result in a more positive experience and a less traumatizing event. From the parent’s perspective, this would also improve their experience and create a less stressful situation, which would make them gain reliability on the hospital. From the professional’s perspective, the procedure would be easier and smoother. If the patient doesn’t offer resistance, it would be easier to find the vein and poke correctly. Time and workload savings would result in a reduction in delays and a smoother patient flow, which is beneficial for the hospital. A better experience of the patients (and parents) would also result in a higher patient satisfaction, which leads to financial benefits.