Hospital Mobile App
Creating a modern hospital EHR mobile app for physicians
The Problem
Physicians only have 30 seconds - 3 mins between patients. They are trying to accomplish many tasks in this time, including collecting, viewing, and assessing data in order to understand who their next patient is and what the best next steps are.
As a result, patient care is affected - physicians spend less time with patients.
The widespread use of paper by physicians reflects the shortcomings of the current Desktop technology. Nearly every physician writes paper notes during their patient visits, or brings physical copies of their schedule, or physical copies of patient lab results.
The Project
The Goals
Improve our existing mobile app to allow Physicians to access their work on any device, between and during patient visits.
Streamline the core workflow for Physicians so speed up their pre-visit tasks and focus on their patients
My Role + The Team
I was one of 2 Lead Designers, working alongside 5 other Junior Designers. As well as 3 UX Researchers.
Issues with Our Existing App
The existing app was originally built as a lightweight companion to the desktop application, with minimal design investment and a narrow scope. Built on outdated technology, it quickly became difficult to maintain, slow to evolve, and visually unappealing. The interface is contrast-heavy, unintuitive, and hard to navigate—an experience that frustrates more than it helps.
Unsurprisingly, App Store reviews reflect this reality, averaging a dismal 2.1 stars, driven by both persistent technical issues and fundamental design flaws.
The Research
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Visit Hospitals
We spent 3 days at 2 hospitals, Hendrick and Sarasota Memorial, shadowing 23 Physicians throughout their day.
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Understand their work culture
We observed them doing their rounds, viewing patient data, note taking, connecting with care team members, placing orders, being on call, and charting,
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Interview Varied Hospitalists
We interviewed Hospitalists, Cardiologists, Med Students, Internal Medicine Practitioners, Nurses, Admin Staff, Physicians’ Assistants, and other ICU staff.
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Understand a Full Patient Visit
We determined the 5 stages of patient visit were:
Pre-charting, Before the Visit, During the Visit, After the Visit, and the Post-Visit Charting
5 Stages of Patient Visit
Gathering info about patient
Usually occurs night before or morning of
1-2 hr/day
Pre-Charting
Before Visit
This the prep before the physician enters the room
30 sec - 3 min
Time spent with patient understanding their concerns
5 mins ~
During Visit
The time the team has to talk through what just happened, organize orders and medications, and create a care plan
30 sec - 5 min
After Visit
Post-Visit Charting
Reviewing everything, writing the narrative, coding, billing and signing documents/orders
30 sec - 5 min
“I print out my patient list in the morning before I leave for work. This morning, my son was sleeping in the car seat in our babysitter’s driveway, I checked all of my patients’ charts for the day...”
— Resident Physician
3 Design Principles From The Research
Simplicity
Physicians are spending 16 to 55 minutes charting each patient, navigating systems that demand endless clicking and searching. In an already high-pressure, mentally taxing environment, this complexity adds unnecessary strain.
How might we simplify the workflow so physicians can focus on care, not cognitive load?
Back to Basics
Physicians need clear, immediate insight into who their next patient is, where to find them, and why they’re seeking care. They require timely, context-rich information at the point of need—before they even enter the room. Time should be spent with patients, collaborating with the care team, and completing tasks efficiently with minimal typing.
How might we create an app that surfaces the needed information quickly to make more time for patients?
Patient Focus
Healthcare technology should help, not hinder—but today, it often slows physicians down. Clunky interfaces, outdated code, and poor design add friction to already demanding workflows. Physicians are left battling systems instead of focusing on their patients.
How might we create a better experience—one that supports physicians, hospitals, and the healthcare system so they can focus on what matters most: the patient’s care?
My Contributions
I worked on the following sections of the app:
Patient List
Patient Pinning
Patient Header
Patient page
Allergies
Notifications
Provider Profile
The App Onboarding tutorial
I also built out a significant portion of the Design System and mentored Junior Designers on their pages.
Initial Designs
Existing Mobile App
Final App Designs
SUS Score
In our post-user testing surveys, users rated the product with a SUS score of 87.5%
“Everything I’d look at is right on the patient list. Just tap in and get to the data. No menus.”
“Most useful thing to have on
an app: Labs and imaging
results.”
“If we had this, it would be worth upgrading to a new phone!”