Evaluative Research for Treatment Cost Estimator Tool
Project Scope
Stakeholders
Digital Enterprise Growth - Digital Customer ExperienceMy Role
UX Researcher, Digital Enterprise Growth - User Experience Team
Product Manager - Digital OperationsProduct Manager - ComplianceHali Osborne - UX ResearcherMethods
Qualitative - Heuristic Evaluation, Competitive Analysis, Survey Intercept DataQuantitative - Website Analytics & Customer Satisfaction RatingsTools
Google Analytics, OpinionLab, Advanced ExcelProject Overview
Background
Increase the adoption of the Treatment Cost Estimator Tool to ensure a patient-centered approach to healthcare delivery
Improve user experience to provide members the ability to make informed healthcare choices
Increase member satisfaction score
Objectives
In this project, I conducted evaluative research around a Treatment Cost Estimator tool, synthesizing website analytics, customer satisfaction ratings, and intercept survey data along with heuristic evaluation and competitor analysis. These tools allow users to identify information around cost of services, treatment timelines, and provide educational resources around a variety of health conditions.
Methodology
Survey Intercept Data & Customer Satisfaction Ratings
Goals
To analyze existing user metrics to identify the current audience breakdown and identify areas/gaps to improve usability, discoverability, and interaction with the tool
Identify existing pain points through member satisfaction data synthesized with analytics data
Research Questions
What actions are individuals most often intending to complete when accessing a treatment cost estimator?
Are there common trends within the the pain points individuals are experiencing when using a treatment cost estimator?
Are certain areas of friction within the experience negatively affecting customer satisfaction ratings more so than others?
The intention behind using a treatment cost estimator varies by individual.
Summary
I synthesized the data to uncover ideal areas to target for further evaluation.
Based on website analytic data collected over a 4-month period, certain market segments were found to correlate with higher instances of use.
The most common intended actions for website and mobile app users were to:
Find total costs for specific services
To find out what is covered with their plan
Costs in relation to their coverage
Personal cost responsibility for specific services
To compare cost options by provider (location), doctor or code
The frequency of mentioned theme was coded and analyzed alongside digital satisfaction ratings to uncover the most common/impactful pain points experienced:
The inability to use the cost estimator to find what they are looking for
Having limited options for searchable content - their specified procedure of condition is not listed
Not providing enough information
The inability to understand what their cost responsibility will be
Information that is incomplete or inaccurate
Lack of connection between the cost estimator and their specific plan
Heuristic Evaluation
Goals
Conduct Heuristic Evaluation of the tool again Gerhardt Powals’ Cognitive Engineering principles
Assess the severity of usability findings to rank areas of focus for redesign
Heuristics describe the cognitive load or mental capacity required to make decisions and complete tasks. Heuristic evaluation increase awareness of common usability problems evaluated against established guidelines and serve as an information method for product teams to identify aspects of the current design that can and are likely to lead to usability problems.
While Nielsen Norman’s 10 Usability Heuristics are standard, I utilized an alternate set of established heuristic principles, Gerhardt-Powals’ 10 Cognitive Engineering Principles, to complete the evaluation. This decision was due to this set of principles being more aligned with the design.
The project scope focused on evaluating specific areas and functionalities of the design correlated with the identified intended actions and existing pain points uncovered from the survey intercept data and customer satisfaction research.
Grading Method
Usability issues identified within each area were assessed to establish and assign ‘severity ratings’ to signify recommended prioritization of areas to focus on
Rankings are identified as which possess the largest (-) negative number
Summary
Browse Costs
Pain point(s):
The inability to use the cost estimator to find what they are looking for
Intended action(s):
Find total costs for specific services
Estimate Costs
Intended action(s):
To find out what is covered with their plan
Costs in relation to their coverage
Personal Cost responsibility specific services
To compare cost options by provider (location), doctor or code
Pain point(s):
The inability to understand what their cost responsibility would be
Lack of connection between cost estimator and their specific plan
Treatment Timeline
Intended action(s):
To search for treatment/care options for a specific condition
Pain point(s):
Not providing enough information
Information that is incomplete or inaccurate
Condition Information
Intended action(s):
To search for treatment/care options for a specific condition
Pain point(s):
Having limited options for searchable content - their specified procedure or condition is not listed
Not providing enough information
Identified Themes
Browse Costs
Data Disorganization, Disconnected Search, Discrepancies, Extraneous Links
Estimate Costs
Displayed Results, Information Imbalance, Unnecessary Options
Treatment Timeline
Cost Responsibility, Comprehensive Information, Disconnected Details, Unclear Costs, Show Details, Ambiguity, Read Between the Lines
Condition Information
Lack of
Competitor Analysis
Goals
Conduct competitor analysis around corresponding areas of the tool to identify ways that competitors approach design of these areas/features
Stanford Healthcare
Competitor Analysis investigates and analyzes data to compare other competing platforms products, designs and experiences, as well as how they created them to find opportunities, weaknesses, strengths, etc.
Competitors
Presented in distinct groupings - patient type or alphabetical order. Narrowed options reduces cognitive load and time spent on task.
Utilizes drop-down menus with recognizable categories that taper down subsequent options based on prior selections.
Treatment Timeline
Browse Costs
Sutter Health
Multi-Care
Kaiser Permanente
Medi-Find
Competitor Insights
Theme
Competitor
Data Disorganization
Kaiser Permanente
Grouped together by type of health care service.
Sutter Health
Sutter Health offers the ability to find costs for multiple services in one search, presenting options alphabetically for easy scanning.
Ability to select multiple options - good for tracking and grouping.
Presented in alphabetical order - reduces cognitive load and increases ability to find intended selection.
Extraneous Links
Multi-care
Data Disorganization
Multi-care utilizes tabs that foster hassle free navigation when search through different categories.
Seamless navigation into and between each category afforded through the usage of tabs.
Competitor Insights
Theme
Competitor
Sutter Health
Cost Responsibility
Sutter Health allows users to enter their personal benefits information then provides a clear cost breakdown.
Can enter in individual benefit information to improve information accuracy.
Provides a cost breakdown of each service & total estimate for all selections, and clearly states total patient responsibility.
Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente allows users to specify the quantity they foresee needing to access a particular service of test to provider a personalized estimate.
Personalization tailored to each individuals specific health care service needs providers estimated costs with higher accuracy.
Comprehensive Information
Stanford Healthcare
Stanford Health Care provides personalized cost breakdowns with integrated information tool-tips.
Clearly displays estimated patient responsibility based on specified coverage details and chosen location of service.
Unclear Costs
Clear cost breakdown with information tool-tips for each projected amount.
Sutter Health
Sutter Health’s five step process allows users to select a specific service location and input health plan information to compare cost estimates between each location.
The location of service that correlates with the estimated cost is clear and unambiguous.
Ambiguity
Clear delineation of distinct information using direct labeling system.
The ability to search for specific health conditions and acquire detailed information and resources to deepen knowledge and receive care.
Medi-Find provides comprehensive information on a wide range of both common and rare medical conditions.
Condition Information
Competitor Insights
Theme
Competitor
Lack of
Medi-Find
Takeaways
Insights & Recommendations
It is recommended to prioritize the identified high priority pain points that displayed the most heuristics violated and area of concern in the Treatment Cost Estimator Tool:
Reducing Uncertainty within the Search: Treatment Timeline experience
To help users understand their cost responsibility, provide clear breakdowns for each service, outline patient responsibility and integrate member coverage details to improve information accuracy.
Disconnected details - to improve clarity, provide connection between high-level summarizations and their respective details.