Unc Inc was asked to set up the platform Kidney donation in life: An initiative of the Nierstichting, Nierpatiënten Vereniging Nederland and Stichting Anonieme Nierdonoren. In addition, we would think along about the online strategy and had to design and develop the final user experience.
The Kidney Donation for Life platform had to provide both kidney donor and patient with the necessary information about the donation and transplantation process. They also had to be able to ask questions to experts here.
In 16,000 kidney patients, kidney function is so poor (less than 15%) that dialysis or transplantation is necessary. Transplantation with a kidney from a living donor is by far the best treatment and preferable to a kidney from a deceased person.
In the last few years, there has been frequent media coverage of kidney patients seeking a donor outside their family and friends. Because transplantation pathways can stir up a lot of emotions, it is nice that as a donor or patient one can read stories from others to support what you are facing and to reflect the diversity of experience.
Identifying user needs
Step one was to map the user journeys of donors and patients. Together with Arjen van Dijkhuizen of Generous Minds we mapped these journeys through interviews with donors, patients and medical professionals.
Through the journeys that provide insight into the issues people have about donation processes, we were then able to map out what information the platform should be able to provide. These include stories of experience that provide insight into the personal experience, an information section that provides extensive information about the pathways and a question-and-answer section where people can ask other unanswered questions. Finally, an inventory was done of current treatment centers and their points of contact that also needed to be on the platform.
All these findings formed the basis for the platform's flowcharts and wireframes, which could then be turned into designs. For development, we chose Drupal 7 as our framework, which already contained a number of existing modules that allowed us to develop the desired functionality.
Testing and optimization
To test the initial strategy and user experience, we conducted a qualitative survey with the potential target audience. The research was done with people who have encountered kidney donation in the past. Using user stories, we asked users to walk through the site. The observations gave us insight into how the website was used and experienced by the target group.
Based on the conclusions of the research, we were able to further optimize the website. This is something we like to do on a regular basis, since user needs never stay the same and innovations in our field are the order of the day.
'Kidney donation in life' is a joint initiative of: