BERNI & MURCER APP
Berni & Murcer is a non-profit organization that works in collaboration with medical professionals and families to provide emotional support, day-to-day comfort, encouragement, and inspiration to children diagnosed with cancer and other life threatening illnesses through the use of materials that are designed to have therapeutic value.
Role - End-to-End Product Designer
Client - Berni & Murcer
Year- 2021
The Problem
When I first met with Berni & Murcer, it was clear that they have a genuine desire to support parents and caregivers of children with cancer during their shocking and overwhelming experience. However, they don't have an application to help them meet the organization's goals.
The Goal
The Founder and CEO of Berni & Murcer had high expectations of the final product and envisioned a number of features to be in the application.
After the first meeting, it became clear that what is needed is a responsive web app that parents and caregivers of children with cancer can access while on the go to get the right information and resources to support them through this difficult time.
User Surveys & Secondary Research
I conducted the primary research using survey results provided by Berni & Murcer. It was hard to reach out for the target audience to conduct user interviews, so I relied on secondary research to validate the survey results and to further understand the target audience needs.
Key Insights
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Many parents/caregivers discussed wanting certain guidelines, roadmaps, and clear instructions on whom to call for help
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More information on how to find the resources needed was desired by many parents/caregivers
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Parents were unsure and desired more information on preparing their survivors to become independent adults
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Others wanted information on support groups for cancer survivors who finished high school and were beginning college
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Social support is essential to help the families to deal with the shock of the diagnosis and the subsequent demands posed by treatment
UNDERSTAND
Affinity Mapping
I took the notes I gathered during discovery and organized them into an Affinity Map, with secondary research notes in blue and survey results in yellow. Here are the key findings:
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Parents and caregivers need resources on various issues for their children living with, through, and beyond cancer
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Parents and caregivers need a continuous social support during the health journey
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Diagnosis and/or relapse of the disease tend to be the most difficult phase for the families of children with cancer. At that moment, in general, they need more emotional support and, during the treatment, they also look for informational support
User Personas
CREATE
Application MVP Features
I regularly met with Berni & Murcer's CEO. During our meetings, I shared the progress in design and brainstormed different ideas.
To visualize the ideas to the CEO, I used sketches. After agreeing on the the design solution, I created user flows to help me think about what happens to the user before and after they visit a particular page. Then I created the sitemap which consists of a diagram of the application's pages organized hierarchically.
The application main features are:
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Main feed where users can post photos, videos, questions and stories. Users can determine the privacy level of their posts.
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Directory of resources for parents and caregivers of children with cancer
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Notes where users can record medications, appointments, and questions for physician
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A list of upcoming events
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Donation form
User Flows
Main Feed User Flow
Resources Directory User Flow
Sitemap
Sketches
Here is the clickable prototype, Feel free to scroll and click through it. Enjoy!
PROTOTYPE
COM
During the competitive analysis, I examined three potential competitors for Berni & Murcer application. The competitors that were covered are:
Competitive Analysis
UNDERSTAND
Living With Cancer Support
Competitive Analysis Findings
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An application that offer a community of people who understand what others are going through and who can offer emotional, social, and educational supports is essential through diagnosis and treatment and into recovery
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Cancer support apps offer several features depending on the app, but most feature support groups, a section for tips, and a third section giving users some basic medical and health advice. Some apps give users a chance to track their appointments with the medical team
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It is important to address privacy and data ownership in cancer support apps
