Can Experience Design Help Healthcare? Yes!

Tom Lee’s presentation at this year’s GEL Conference focused on how his healthcare organization, One Medical, is making tangible progress to making the experience of healthcare delivery better while maintaining profitability. Here’s the video:

In a very approachable style, Tom explains how hard the ‘medical system’ makes it for patients. They put up obstacles for patients to climb over (like voice mail systems); they use jargon that makes it hard for patients to understand them, and there are claim forms that separate doctors from the people they are trying to help.

Here’s what ‘medicine’ looks like to patients:

It’s no wonder people don’t feel good at offices.

One Medical’s offices vary by location. Here’s one from New York City.

Now, that’s the kind of environment that would lighten anyone’s spirit! One Medical doesn’t leave it to the ‘system’ to find new patients. They take accountability for finding their own. Clever advertising, like this subway sign, do the trick.

Summary

If One Medical can do it with the resources they have in a tough economic environment and difficult claims systems we have, larger systems should have an easier job because they have more resources to apply and much more to save. Of course, larger systems are weighted down by legacy behaviors and, sometimes, the lack of energy to drive toward a vision. But, that’s another blog post…