/ Inspiring with design

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Lead Product Designer for a digital healthcare ecosystem for chronic condition management.

Managing chronic pain is one of the most complex challenges in healthcare. Patients often navigate fragmented care systems, unclear treatment plans, and limited access to specialists.

Fern Health set out to build a digital care platform that could provide patients with structured, evidence-based treatment programs delivered virtually.

The Challenge

Patients enrolling in the program were often dealing with:

• long histories of untreated pain
• low trust in healthcare systems
• confusion around treatment plans
• complex onboarding processes

Early versions of the product created friction during onboarding and program engagement, causing drop-offs before patients even began treatment.

My Role

As a Product Designer, I helped redesign key parts of the patient experience, focusing on clarity, trust, and engagement.

I partnered with product managers, clinicians, and engineers to rethink how the platform introduced patients to their treatment journey.

Design Approach

We focused on three key UX principles:

Reduce cognitive overload
Healthcare onboarding was broken into smaller, understandable steps.

Build trust early
Clear explanations helped patients understand how behavioral therapy and digital treatment programs would support their recovery.

Support motivation and progress
Treatment programs were redesigned to make progress visible and rewarding.

Outcome

The redesigned experiences improved patient comprehension of their care journey and reduced friction during program onboarding — helping more patients begin treatment successfully.

What I Learned

Designing for healthcare requires balancing clinical accuracy, emotional sensitivity, and usability.
When patients feel understood and supported, engagement improves dramatically.