For my user research, I created a survey with brief questions about eczema so I could get a better idea of the condition pregnant women have with eczema during their trimesters. The questions did not go into a lot of detail since I didn't want to overcrowd the users with a lot of questions - it is only the initial user research as well (Questions with greater detail added on a different survey). I only received 4 responses, which was a bit off-putting but did allow me to get an idea about the users’ condition. Throughout the survey, I asked them whether it was their first time experiencing eczema (Q1), and the result came back saying 75% said yes. This states they are new to this and do not have guidance on how to manage it. Meaning there are ways to support them and their pregnancy. The answers for Q2 have some faculties because of the distribution of the options, however, the answers are mixed, meaning half of them have said their symptoms improved, whilst the others are saying it’s varied or worse. This showcases there are no right or wrong answers and every user has a personal experience with eczema. From this, I can cater for people with different flare-ups, matching with the correct antidote in managing their symptoms
Throughout the survey, I asked them whether it was their first time experiencing eczema (Q1), and the result came back saying 75% said yes. This states they are new to this and do not have guidance on how to manage it. Meaning there are ways to support them and their pregnancy. The answers for Q2 have some faculties because of the distribution of the options, however, the responses are mixed, meaning half of them have said their symptoms improved, whilst the others are saying it’s varied or worse. This showcases there are no right or wrong answers and every user has a personal experience with eczema. From this, I can cater for people with different flare-ups, matching with the correct antidote in managing their symptoms. Q3 is to see whether they have been prescribed medication. This is so to understand whether the app should focus on doctors and patients. Especially for both groups to work together digitally in managing eczema.
Q1
Q2 & Q3
Question 4, focuses on the comfortability of the symptoms. Again, there are mixed answers which are not necessarily negative. I wanted to know whether there is a way to help them emotionally and physically since eczema and pregnancy can lead to some uncomfortable factors. Question 4 links with Question 5; Q5 will also help me identify the symptoms causing them problems; the app focuses on giving them the insight to minimise the symptoms, so I can research the most common symptoms.
Next is Question 6 understanding how it affects people’s daily lives. I found these answers helpful as each person has a different answer. Seeing each answer is different also helps me identify how I can also create features that focus on daily life tasks (such as running everyday errands like grocery shopping) but also incorporate it with eczema and pregnancy.
Q4
Q5
It then follows Questions 6 & 7. These last two questions are more general questions about whether users would use this app and again, it was a series of no right or wrong answers. This made me question whether this subject is a good topic to solve and follow. However, this is only a small number of responses, so that shouldn't impact how this project should turn out. With better research, I can get a better understanding of this idea in the next survey, and then see how I can implement it with helpful features and solutions that users would want to use.
Q6 & Q7
For the user personas, I figured the app should focus on doctors and patients, especially by gathering the answers from the survey and secondary research. When a patient is going through treatment by their doctor, they would need to monitor their condition daily which can cause an overflow of appointments. This can lead to busy, packed schedules or having to cancel other important appointments. This is why the main Needs and Frustrations for them are to find a solution that tackles busyness and minimise constant monitoring of symptoms affecting their schedules. I think having an app where both patients and doctors can work together, can make it easier to gather problems and solve them. This app would also be seen as a helper for both parties to use remotely, helping to identify issues whenever patients and doctors do not have time to visit in person or communicate.
Grace would also like to learn more about her symptoms, especially as it’s affecting her from concentrating at work and feeling confident. Having an app that will act as a supporter where it reviews her condition and teach her how to handle them, can make her feel more in control, even minus the need of visiting a doctor all the time. Linking with the doctor, it can help them positively by providing better care for the patients with the help of the app. The app will act as a working partner for the doctor to review and manage the patient's symptoms, which lowers stress and pressure if they have limited time with patients during appointments.
By taking this information, I will start to develop the app and come up with feature ideas that would help tackle these problems.
