UX Research
Health Tech
Mobile
CHRONICLE
♦︎
TL;DR
ROLE
UX DESIGNER
TEAM
CLINICAL RESEARCHERS, UX DESIGNER
Duration
FEB - MAY 2022
PROBLEM
Korean patients were leaving Columbia’s orthopedic surgical journey at higher rates than other groups. I was brought in as a bilingual UX researcher to uncover why and identify ways to improve their experience.
SOLUTION
Collaborated with clinicians and staff to design triage protocols, pre-visit checklists, and clearer UX writing that improved patient guidance through the Chronicle app.
IMPACT
−15% missed appointments, +87% pre-visit task completion, and surgical drop-off reduced from 35% → 10%.
01.
USER RESEARCH
Being bilingual allowed me to communicate with patients in Korean and uncover unfiltered stories that would have otherwise never reached the clinical staff.
I initially assumed the issue was language barriers, but it quickly became clear that the problem ran deeper.
My second hypothesis was that older Korean patients didn’t prefer using apps — but once again, I was proven wrong.
The research revealed that:
98%
Owned Smartphones
100%
Use Multiple Apps Daily
82%
Preferred to Use an App
“It took me so long to fill out all the intake paperwork in person. It would’ve been much better if I could fill it out at home with my son”
“I was turned away because I didn’t bring a CD. No one told me! If I had known earlier, I would have brought it to the hospital.”
“The nurse explained the surgery process at the visit, I nodded at the visit, but honestly, I had no idea what I was supposed to do next. So I canceled surgery.”
After grouping insights into affinity maps to uncover common themes across patient stories, I mapped the end-to-end journey of patients considering surgery to identify exactly where those pain point themes were occurring. What emerged was a clear view of where the experience was breaking down.
Across 50+ interviews, one theme stood out — patients felt unsupported and uninformed. Most of the experience was broken at the top of the funnel
Call Center Scheduling → Long wait, No triage, ineligible patients booked with surgeon, instructions not properly given.
Visit Preparation → Patients not told to bring radiology CDs/reports → onsite cancellations & loss of trust.
Check-In & Intake → Lengthy, English-only forms with no support → delays & clinician frustration.
Next Steps After Visit → No clear guidance on how to move forward → patients quietly drop out.
User Pain Point Breakdown:
Increase peak
of first visit
Significant drop
for follow up visit
Significant drop for follow up
Further drop in
surgery scheduled
Surgery is the backbone of the orthopedic department’s revenue, and the growing Korean patient population represented a huge opportunity. Marketing campaigns and new outpatient offices had successfully brought patients in the door.
And then — they vanished.
♦
CHALLENGE
♦
WHY IS THIS A PROBLEM?
Clinically Asian American patients are proven to have higher pain tolerance, which means that by the time they reach a surgeon, surgery is often truly necessary. Losing them at the funnel’s start meant lost surgeries, lost revenue, and lost trust.
One patient canceled surgery and said:
“I’m flying out to Korea to get the surgery there”
Anonymous Patient Quote
It was striking to learn that one patient chose to endure a 16-hour flight home with a serious back injury rather than proceed with surgery at a world-renowned hospital.
This highlighted a deeper issue.
My mission was to understand why this was happening and design a better experience to keep patients moving confidently down the surgical funnel.
02.
Goal
With nearly 98% of patients using smartphones daily, and over 80% open to managing their care through an app, the opportunity wasn’t to introduce new technology, but to reimagine awareness and relevance.
So why weren’t our users using Chronicle?
No awareness: Call center staff never mentioned it.
Buried value: Even patients who tried it couldn’t find useful information.
My goal was to connect the app to the patient journey, ensuring it became a trusted, accessible resource,
not an overlooked tool.
This transformed the call center into the first digital onboarding touchpoint, positioning the app as a trusted part of the patient journey. We built the first touchpoint at the top of the funnel, ensuring patients arrived for their visits already equipped and familiar with the tool.
Call Center Triage & Escalation Protocol
03.
SERVICE DESIGN
Before jumping into screen design, I focused on the service workflows to see how patients encountered their first digital touchpoint and how we could better guide them to the app.
04.
AUDIT & ANALYSIS
I ran usability tests with a mix of Korean and non-Korean patients to evaluate the current UX.
I gave participants four tasks:
Check their appointment schedule, after signing up for the app.
Locate the intake form tied to their visit.
Complete the intake form on the app.
Try to find instructions on what to bring to their first visit.
These were the key findings:
Patients easily located their appointments through the top navigation bar, completing the task in 20–30 seconds — consistent with industry benchmarks for simple lookup tasks.
Even native English speakers took 15-20 minutes to complete the intake form. It was text-heavy, used small fonts, and lacked progress indicators, making the process feel endless.
We knew participants would fail this task since the feature didn’t exist yet, but I included it intentionally to observe where users instinctively looked for this information.
Checking appointment schedule took
average of ~20 sec
Intake took native English speakers 25-30 minutes to complete.
All questions were text heavy, fonts were extra small
No progress indicator, which felt like the process was taking them forever
Where users naturally looked to find the checklist
Patients breezed through simple actions like finding their appointment, but intake and preparation tasks ballooned beyond usability norms, causing frustration that likely contributed to higher drop-offs.
05.
SOLUTIONS
KEY FEATURE 1: PRE-VISIT CHECKLIST
Created task-based checklists tied to each appointment, including what imaging to bring and paperwork to complete.
Nudges and reminders integrated into the app to keep patients on track with upcoming tasks and appointments.
Pre-visit checklist embedded under appointment details, giving patients one unified place to track everything they need for their visit.
Unified space under appointment details where patients can access all forms and important reminders in one place.
Additional entry point added so patients can easily prepare for their visit from multiple touchpoints within the app.
Medication
Test Results
Patient Dashboard
Welcome, John
Edit
preferred language: Korean
Schedule Visit
Appointments
Medical Records
Billing
Upcoming visits
Dr. Sarah Smith
Orthopedic Surgeon
Fri, Oct 15, 2021 at 2:00PM
Finish the pre-visit checklist.
Dr. Eric Shea
Dermatology
Mon, Oct 18, 2021 at 12:00PM
Finish the pre-visit checklist.
Chronicle+
2m ago
Appointment reminder: Complete your pre-visit checklist for tomorrow's orthopedic appointment.
Upcoming Appointment
Dr. Sarah Smith
Orthopedic Surgeon
Tomorrow, Oct 15, 2021
2:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Orthopedic Center, Room 204
Visit Type
New Consultation
Pre-Visit Checklist
Confirm appointment time
Confirmed via text message
Review medical history
Updated in patient portal
Prepare insurance card
Card ready in wallet
Bring MRI CD and reports
From last scan (Sept 15, 2024)
Required for appointment
Complete new patient intake form
Form sent via email and message
Open form
Update current medications list
Include dosages and frequency
Update list
Complete insurance pre-authorization form
Form sent via email
Open form
3 of 7 completed
Important Reminders
• Arrive 15 minutes early for check-in
• Bring a list of current symptoms
• Wear comfortable, loose-fitting clothing
• Parking is available on Level 2
Call Office
Get Directions
KEY FEATURE 2: SIMPLIFIED INTAKE REDESIGN
Reduced word-heavy forms by rewriting content in plain language, in collaboration with clinicians.
Added section breaks and a progress indicator to help patients see their progress and know how much is left.
Increased font size and spacing to improve readability, especially for older patients.
Removed redundant fields and reorganized questions to match the natural flow of a medical intake.
Step 1 of 5
~8 min left
Demographics
Help us understand your current health so we can provide the best care for you.
What is your full name?
First Name
Last Name
What is your date of birth?
DOB
What is your home address?
Street Address
Street Address 2
City
State
Zip code
Next
Save and Continue Later
New Patient Intake
Step 2 of 5
~5 min left
Current Health Status
Help us understand your current health so we can provide the best care for you.
Are you currently taking any
medications?
Include prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and supplements
Yes, I take medications
No, I don't take any medications
Do you have any allergies we should
know about?
This includes food allergies, drug allergies, or environmental allergies
Yes, I have allergies
No known allergies
Next
Save and Continue Later
New Patient Intake
KEY FEATURE 3: Language Preference Flag
A fully bilingual app wasn’t feasible, as supporting Korean would require scaling to all languages. While not the ideal localization solution, this approach still provided patients with a safer and more supportive experience within our constraints.
Notified patients that language-specific forms and support would be available and flagged for staff.
Added onboarding notice about interpreter services, ensuring patients knew support was available.
Added a language preference step — selecting Korean flagged the profile for staff to prep translated paperwork
Skip
Select Your Language
Choose your preferred language for hospital communications and paperwork
English
Default language
한국어 (Korean)
Korean language
Español (Spanish)
Spanish language
中文 (Mandarin)
Chinese language
Other
Please specify
Language Support
Professional interpreters are available upon request. We'll ensure clear communication throughout your healthcare experience.
Continue
You can change this setting later in your profile
Medication
Test Results
Patient Dashboard
Welcome, John
Edit
preferred language: Korean
Schedule Visit
Appointments
Medical Records
Billing
Upcoming visits
Dr. Sarah Smith
Orthopedic Surgeon
Fri, Oct 15, 2021 at 2:00PM
Finish the pre-visit checklist.
Dr. Eric Shea
Dermatology
Mon, Oct 18, 2021 at 12:00PM
Finish the pre-visit checklist.
Language Preference Noted
Staff will prepare paperwork in your preferred language. Your profile has been flagged for appropriate language support during your visit.
The redesigned workflows and app changes delivered measurable improvements:
Most importantly, more patients successfully advanced to surgery scheduling, restoring confidence in both patients and surgeons.
06.
IMPACT
07.
REFLECTION
My role wasn’t just to redesign an app. It was to orchestrate the entire entrypoint into surgery — aligning service workflows and digital tools so patients could get the care they needed, and surgeons could deliver it.
This project reminded me that in healthcare, design is as much service design as it is UX.
Improving the app alone wouldn’t have solved the drop-off. It was the triage protocols and escalation logic that fixed the front door of the system.
Language is care. Even without full localization, a simple flag gave patients confidence and dignity.
The biggest win was designing a system that worked for everyone — patients felt supported, surgeons saw qualified cases, and staff had clearer workflows.
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