Ziying Liu
MedSim
Overview
This project created an efficient video database system for the Michigan Medicine Clinic Simulation Center, transferring simulation videos from 2009-2019 to a new platform. It aimed to improve the accessibility, reliability, and management of these essential training resources. Our team also developed a mobile app and website portal, ensuring versatile access and enhanced user experience across multiple devices.
Duration
Client:
16 weeks
CLINICAL SIMULATION CENTER, Michigan Medicine
Team:
Ziying Liu, Tonglu Ji
01.Context
What is MedSim?
MedSim represents a pivotal project I contributed to, designed for the University of Michigan Medical School Simulation Video Center. This comprehensive system, developed to archive simulation videos spanning from 2009 to 2019.
Featuring both a mobile app and a website interface, MedSim exemplifies my commitment to creating accessible, user-centered design solutions that enhance learning and training experiences in medical education.
Who are the users?
Michigan Medicine Students,
Professors,
Researchers,
IT manager.
What was the problem?
Since 2019, the simulation center has transitioned to a new system developed by the University for storing new video content. However, the integration of simulation videos from 2009 to 2019 has been hindered by format inconsistencies and incomplete metadata, resulting in their storage on Google Drive. This approach has introduced several user experience challenges.
Furthermore, the archival inconsistencies of the older video system, spanning a decade, have led to irregular and inadequate metadata cataloging. Many entries lack essential information, making it difficult to identify video content accurately. Additionally, the use of Google Drive and an associated spreadsheet for video archiving is suboptimal. It lacks advanced search capabilities, significantly hindering user ability to efficiently locate specific videos.
What was the Goal?
-
Our goal is to create an accessible and user-friendly database for clinical simulation videos.
-
The platform will enable doctors, serving as teachers, students, and researchers, to efficiently find and utilize videos that best meet their educational and research requirements.
-
Focus will be placed on ensuring the convenience of search and retrieval, to meet users' specific needs in a streamlined and effective manner.
-
Enrich the videos with effective searching
What were my responsibilities ?
-
Branding and logo design, establishing the project's visual identity.
-
UI design, focusing on creating intuitive and engaging interfaces.
-
Conducting user interviews and developing personas to guide user-centric design decisions.
02.Research
Need finding Interview
User(s): Currently, there are four types of potential users.
a) students: who need it in their daily practice and exam.
b) instructors: who need access in their teachings.
c) (student)researchers: who need access to review the historical simulation practice to conduct research and write academic papers.
d) technicians: who need to manage the entire database, upload or modify.
We conduct user interviews with one instructor, one technician and some potential students.
Current Workflow
Interview Analysis
Based on the user interviews we conducted, we translate them into the actual design issues in terms of user experience as following:
-
Extremely high learning cost: spreadsheet + google drive
-
Repetitive search steps (multiple search to identity one content)
-
Low Search Accuracy (Difficulty of applying multiple conditions)
-
Low Results Relevance (Lack of information scent on results)
-
Difficulty of Management (content + user access)
-
The volume of information in the Google Drive is overwhelming, as it serves as the sole hosting platform for these videos.
-
The lack of automated search tools forces users to rely on manual, visually intensive search methods.
-
An absence of an interactive, automated search mechanism decreases search efficiency.
Big problem to Question
-
Search priority? search by ID, faculty, picture, or script
-
Hint/options to show in the search box? [option: minimize learning cost]
-
Search with multiple conditions? [option: single filter when searching/multiple filter when searching]
-
How do we display searching results? [option: present by result accuracy vs. (intagent) relevancy]
-
How do we manage content and access permission?
Persona
Based on the persona, we found:
-
IT Manager's needs are completely different from other users.
-
Researchers and students has similar needs: accurate/filtered search results; need to collect the videos they found
-
Professor need to share multi videos to students sometimes.
-
Students may need to share the video to peers and take notes.
After QOC, we decide to extract an audio transcript with Sonic Ai, which could increase the searchable content of all the videos.
03. Ideation
Technical Solution
1. Enrich Searchable Contents
2. An Effective Interaction Tool
Considering the needs of different users and the results of the analysis, one of the important points of our solution is how to build an interactive platform for users to manage/browsing such a large number of video files at the same time.
3. Mobile App + Website
When we designed the persona and user research we found that the motivation and purpose of the technician had no connection with any other user, so we designed the port as two different entrances, as the entrance and function of the technician were completely different from the other student and teacher users.
During the wireframe phase, we conducted a usability test with 15 potential users to ensure the site's viability.
04. Final Design
Wireframe
Final Design - Mobile App
Final Design - Desktop Website
