Designers
Octave Bioscience / Melinda Thomas, Bill Hagstrom, Danielle Siniscalchi / DesignMap / Sean Jalleh, Zainab Rupawalla, Curtis Koyama, Pooja Kanipakam, Audrey Crane, Maureen Hanratty, Veronica Martini, Charles Hamilton, Mike Aurelio
Year
2023
Category
Product
Country
United States
»Octave cares for improving the quality of life for 2.5 million people that live with MS worldwide. It does a great job providing the user with a tool that allows them to manage their MS care independently, while still offering the ability to lean on their Care Partner for advice when things escalate. The award goes to a well-rounded example of a patient empowering product with the potential of encompassing further neurodegenerative diseases.«
Mine Danışman Taşar & Alex Mulder
Three questions for the project team
What was the particular challenge of the project from a UX point of view?
We were challenged with designing for a diverse set of end-users. As one of Octave’s Nurse Care Partners put it, “MS patients are like snowflakes—no two are quite the same.” DesignMap brought a design thinking process that helped remove bias and allowed the end-user’s voice to shape key decisions. One example is the Octave care cycle, a function of the mobile app and visual aid that represents time between office visits. Every new care cycle is an opportunity for the patient to make progress in managing/slowing the progression of their disease. Another example is only sending discreet notifications to patients at moments when they are already thinking about their MS. Octave continues to ask “what can we do to help more patients today?”
What was your personal highlight in the development process? Was there an aha!-moment, was there a low point?
Designers and Octave stakeholders touched a wide range of design activities, processes, and deliverables. Design’s role was not only to create a single touchpoint (like the App), but rather, to design the process and experience of the entire system. This constituted many different touch points and the “in-between” spaces that intersect like onboarding, physician visits, and more. Design drove foundational product and company-wide decisions by gathering stakeholders and sparking fruitful conversations that may not have happened otherwise. DesignMap brought a design perspective and Octave brought industry and subject matter expertise. Combined, we saw design thinking chip away at the unknown and provide the confidence to make key decisions.
Where do you see yourself and the project in the next five years?
Octave's vision is that we are the standard of care for MS and other neurodegenerative diseases so patients can live more harmonious lives. An estimated 2.5 million people live with MS worldwide, according to the MS Discovery Forum. And, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, there are more than 600 neurologic disorders, with approximately 50 million Americans affected each year. While starting with MS and focused on user-centric principles, Octave has the potential to transform the insights and paradigm of neurodegenerative disease patient care.
