EPIC participants will be invited to play the role of potential patients and relatives in a workshop – as if they were taking part in a real workshop being conducted by Designit. This ‘workshop in a workshop’ aims to show EPIC participants how they can use workshops as a method to gain deeper, valuable understanding of users.
Workshop case
The German university hospital Gesundheit in Hamburg plans to build a new hospital in 2020. Gesundheit has asked Designit to conduct studies on user needs and user perspectives. The studies are expected to lead to improvements in the hospital facilities, organisation and values so they match user needs.
Designit intends to conduct fieldwork in several departments at the hospital and in other healthcare settings. Designit also intends to conduct qualitative interviews with patients, professionals, managers and patient relatives. Designit will employ cultural probes as a method.
This workshop will only involve patients, potential patients and relatives. Designit plans to conduct a separate workshop with professionals.
Goal
To communicate a method to achieve a deeper understanding of the user. A way to explore the users needs, preferences and expectations using visual and spatial contexts.
Key benefits
The attendants will hopefully be inspired and gain knowledge about a specific workshop method.
Structure and activities
- Designit will deliver a 20-minute presentation about the workshop aim.
- Participants will receive nametags with the role of potential patient or relative.
- The group will work in groups, where they will be presented with a variety of pictures that could represent values and organisation of the future Gesundheit hospital. (This exercise aims to encourage non-verbal thinking amongst participants). Participants will take turns in choosing a picture and telling the others why they think this is significant. Participants discuss the chosen cards. This will last for 1 hour.
- The groups will present what they have talked about/decided to each other. This will last for 20 mins.
- Participants will be divided into groups, where they will receive a floor plan of a hospital ward. They will discuss how best to design the plan. This will last for 1 hour.
- Each group presents the results of their discussions to the workshop participants. This will last for 20 min.
Target audience
Attendants who wish to apply a more non verbal focus as a workshop method to understand their user.
Organisers
Tine Park, Strategic Design Consultant and Project Manager. Designit
Louise Buch, Anthropologist. Designit
Background: Designit is currently applying service design at Odense University Hospital in Denmark. Designit's task has to create a concept for a new hospital ward, which offers better service for patients, relatives and staff – while minimising operational costs. The ward is due to open in August/September 2009. Designit will also deliver recommendations for the new Odense University Hospital, which is scheduled to open in 2018. The new ward is furthermore expected to function as a practical ‘test lab’ giving the hospital a unique possibility to test for example new procedures, interior, etc. in small scale before applying some of the features in the new hospital. Designit is applying a user-centred and multi-disciplinary approach, involving users and a range of experts in a participatory and bottom-up innovation process.
