Summary: Bios Corp is a provider of support for individuals living with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). The support plans they build strive to be person-centered, tailored to the individuals unique needs and preferences. However, current systems relied on manual input and memory to maintain these standards. I interviewed and collaborated with leaders at Bios Corp, person-centered thinking professionals, and direct support staff in order to develop workable prototypes for a revamped person-centered support plan builder.
Person-centered thinking is an approach to planning and problem-solving that places the individual at the center of decision-making. It involves considering the unique needs, preferences, and goals of each person an using this information to develop plans that are tailored to their specific needs.
These user stories emerged:
As an Industry Leader, I want to ensure excellent support for my clients so that we regularly exceed industry standards and requirements.
As a Person Centered Thinking Expert, I want to help facilitate Person Centered practices so that individual support plans (ISP) created for individuals are based on their desires for a whole and fulfilling life.
As a Caretaker, I want to be aware of any important information about the person I'm caring for so that I can effectively do my job.
Some pain points we uncovered:
Information collection. Gathering accurate and relevant information about a person's needs, preferences, and goals can be a challenging and time-consuming task.
Customization. Creating a truly person-centered support plan requires a high degree of customization. Each person can have extremely unique needs.
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Interface Design. Designing a user-friendly interface that allows users to input, manipulate, and update data easily can be challenging.
Integration with Existing Systems. Ensuring compatibility and data consistency across multiple existing systems.
The final design involved a side panel that would allow case managers and support plan builders to view, add, and update any person-centered information related to the person and their specific support tasks.
Not only did this increase the salience of the person-centered information for better awareness but also the intentional friction was designed to ensure each support task was created as a result of something that was relevant not just to what was important for the person but also to the person.
In addition to the support plan builder, I also contributed to the following screens and features.
Personal finances. Features to allow caretakers to keep track of each individual's money and budgeting appropriately.
Personal property. Features to allow caretakers to keep track of each individual's
Individual training. Designing a user-friendly interface that allows users to input, manipulate, and update data easily can be challenging.
Incorporate subject matter experts early. By incorporating the input and participation of industry leaders, person-centered professionals, and direct support staff throughout the planning process, we were able to understand the problem space quickly and effectively. In such a complex space, it was crucial for us to lean on those that experience the pain points of existing systems directly and ask them for desired solutions.
