Human-Centered Design Thinking in Healthcare: Evercare’s Innovative Approach to Enhancing Clinical Operations

Evercare Group is committed to transforming healthcare delivery through innovation and creativity. As the Chief Commercial Officer, I am excited to share how we are advancing our strategic roadmap for clinical operations through innovative workshops centered around Human-Centered Design Thinking (HCDT). These workshops target both our Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and frontline caregivers, fostering collaboration and creativity across the organization.

HCDT is a powerful approach for addressing complex problems and generating creative solutions. At Evercare, we believe in revolutionizing processes to empower our workforce with the tools they need to tackle everyday challenges and contribute to strategic decision-making. HCDT is the ideal framework for these workshops, as it encourages empathy, creativity, and a solution-oriented mindset.

Led by Dr. Asad I. Mian, a seasoned professional in Emergency Medicine, our workshops held in January and February 2024 marked a significant milestone in our journey towards patient-centered care and operational excellence. These workshops took place in our facilities in Lekki, Nigeria, and Nairobi, Kenya, reflecting our commitment to innovation across our global footprint.

We chose to focus our workshops on the Emergency Department (ED) as a thematic area for exploration. Dr. Mian’s expertise in Emergency Medicine made the ED an ideal case study for our participants. However, we also encouraged the exploration of other hospital domains to ensure a comprehensive learning experience.

Our workshops were meticulously designed to address the multifaceted challenges faced by modern EDs. Through the lens of HCDT, we aimed to tackle these challenges with empathy, creativity, and a solution-oriented approach. Following Stanford’s d.school 's five-step HCDT model, participants engaged in problem identification, ideation, and experimentation to develop innovative solutions.

The target audience for these workshops comprised Evercare's healthcare professionals in Lekki and Nairobi, all eager to explore the fundamentals of HCDT while addressing real-life clinical challenges. The workshops were structured like mini hackathons, fostering team-based ideation and hands-on collaboration. Participants worked in smaller groups to brainstorm innovative solutions, fostering a culture of creativity and teamwork.

At the heart of our workshops was a commitment to enhancing patient outcomes, staff well-being, and hospital performance. Through open-mindedness and collaborative efforts, participants gained a deep understanding of design thinking principles and their application in healthcare settings. They were empowered to pitch well-thought-out problem statements and sustainable solutions tailored to address specific challenges within EDs and beyond.

Spanning over two days in Lekki and one day in Nairobi, our workshops witnessed active involvement from Evercare's co-facilitators under Dr. Mian's guidance. Utilizing resources such as PowerPoint presentations, mind maps, and focused group discussions, the sessions fostered an environment of inclusivity, devoid of judgment or hierarchy.

The outcomes of these workshops were profoundly insightful. In Lekki, teams identified critical areas for improvement, including poor referral systems, communication gaps, and emergency response delays. Proposed solutions ranged from establishing clear policies to creating new roles like referral coordinators.

In Nairobi, participants utilized the PICO (Population|Ideation|Context|Outcome) framework of HCDT to dissect problems/pain points related to healthcare delivery and patient service efficiency. Ideas centered around simplicity, cost-effectiveness, and leveraging existing resources, aligning with the ethos of 'jugaar' innovation.

To ensure the quality of the HCDT workshops, participants were requested to fill a brief survey. The majority of participants fell within the age bracket of 31-40 years, indicating a strong interest and engagement from mid-career professionals. The responses received indicate that a significant majority of participants found the HCDT workshops to offer sufficient educational value. This suggests that the content and delivery of the workshops effectively met the learning objectives and expectations of the attendees. Additionally, most participants expressed that the workshops were relaxing, non-stressful, and enjoyable. This positive sentiment towards the workshop environment likely contributed to increased engagement and participation. However, an area of concern highlighted by participants was the perceived inadequacy of the time allocated for the workshops. This suggests that there may be opportunities to extend the duration of future workshops or optimize the agenda to allow for a deeper exploration of topics and more hands-on activities. The most reassuring quality metric of this approach for Evercare hospitals was that 100% of the participants said that they would recommend these workshops to their colleagues.

Also very satisfying is the fact that several teams were willing to move ahead to the prototyping and testing stages of the HCDT process. Moving forward, Evercare Group is committed to rolling out a similar HCDT workshop in Lahore, and in tandem integrating the outcomes of these workshops into its global processes, strategies, and policies. The HCDT approach can become an integral part of the innovation and incubation framework, allowing for the seamless integration of ideas generated by employees into everyday practices. Innovative approaches to employee engagement and development will be prioritized, ensuring that staff feel empowered to contribute their insights and ideas towards continuous improvement.

Through a human-centered approach, Evercare is not only paving the way for a more compassionate, effective, and sustainable healthcare ecosystem but also fostering a culture of innovation and creativity among its employees. By embracing HCDT methodologies, Evercare Group is poised to set new benchmarks in innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship across its landscape, ensuring that it remains at the forefront of healthcare innovation well into the future.

Written by Irfan Khan, Chief Commercial Officer, Evercare Group and with the contribution of Dr Mahreen Sulaiman, Co-Director at Critical Creative Innovative Thinking – CCIT.

REFERENCES

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