QuickCare

Prototype link (Please submit a link to a playable prototype, not a link to your design file)

QuickCare Prototype

Describe your project (max 150 words)

QuickCare is designed to bring fast and accessible healthcare to rural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa. Guided by the belief that all humans deserve good health and well-being, as stated in the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, QuickCare ensures that even those in underserved areas have access to essential medical support. With the AI assistant, users can enter their symptoms to receive possible diagnoses, find over-the-counter medication, and schedule telehealth appointments with real doctors in the city. The app also arranges medication delivery to local pickup stations, making sure treatments reach those who need them. By blending AI-driven analysis with human expertise, QuickCare keeps healthcare personal, using technology to connect people and enhance well-being.

Describe your research process and findings. If you conducted any surveys or interviews, please include the survey form and/or interview questions here. If you conducted secondary research by pulling from online sources, please include a link to your sources. (Max 500 words)

Since QuickCare is designed for people in rural Africa, the research process included secondary research, competitive analysis, and personal experiences. One of the key questions guiding this research was how to make healthcare as accessible as possible. This led to an exploration of topics such as optimized app design and medication delivery systems in small towns and villages.

Since COVID-19, telehealth has expanded in Africa with the increase of internet access through Starlink satellites and smartphone adoption. Zimbabwe has some early telehealth initiatives, but their interfaces are not user-friendly. However, most of Sub-Saharan Africa still lacks accessible telehealth solutions, and healthcare access as a whole remains limited. Many countries have only 0.2 doctors per 1,000 people, while the WHO recommends at least 1 per 1,000. In comparison, the United States has 3.6 per 1,000.

AI powered health apps exist in countries like the United States, but the role of AI in healthcare is still being studied. In contrast, Sub-Saharan Africa has little to no AI driven healthcare solutions. Limited infrastructure and resource constraints have slowed adoption, leaving many communities without access to possible AI assisted diagnostics or treatment recommendations. While telehealth is growing in some regions, AI integration in healthcare remains largely unexplored.

For design research, I focused on minimizing environmental impact in alignment with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals while also improving speed and usability. Research showed that reducing digital bloat, using environmentally friendly color palettes, and integrating micro-interactions are key to a smoother user experience.

Describe your most important design decisions. What research findings and/or user testing results led you to make these decisions? (Max 500 words)

Designing QuickCare required decisions that ensure accessibility, efficiency, and sustainability for users in rural Sub-Saharan Africa. Research focused on optimizing usability, healthcare accessibility, and environmental impact, all of which directly shaped the design choices.

One of the most important decisions was creating a simple and intuitive UI to accommodate users with low digital literacy. Research on existing telehealth apps in Zimbabwe revealed that many interfaces were overly complex and difficult to navigate. To improve usability, I designed large touch targets, clear typography, and minimal steps for key workflows like symptom checking and medication requests. This ensures users can easily understand and interact with the app, even if they have limited experience with digital tools.

Given the limited healthcare access in rural Sub-Saharan Africa, research showed the need for a system that integrates AI-driven illness identification, medication delivery, and appointment scheduling. By integrating AI, the app can help users quickly recognize possible illnesses, recommend over-the-counter medications, and schedule telehealth appointments when necessary, reducing unnecessary doctor visits and preventing system overload.

To further streamline the healthcare experience, users have dedicated pages for each medication they take, ensuring easy access to dosage information and refill options. Their medical history is stored in their profile, allowing doctors to review past conditions, prescriptions, and treatments before and during appointments.

For telehealth appointments, the app supports in-app video calls with doctors, removing the need for third-party platforms and making virtual consultations more accessible. User testing revealed that having a record of past interactions was highly desired, leading to the decision to log the symptoms reported to the AI assistant and the AI’s preliminary assessment on the appointment page. This provides doctors with immediate context before the consultation and gives users a reference history of their conversation with the AI assistant. After the appointment, users can review the doctor’s diagnosis and prescribed medications, ensuring they fully understand their treatment plan and have access to the necessary medications.

Each of these design decisions was guided by research on healthcare access, telehealth usability, and digital sustainability. By prioritizing simplicity, accessibility, and efficiency, QuickCare hopes to provide a seamless and user-friendly healthcare experience for underserved communities.

Built With

• figma