MediNet

We connect people experiencing similar medical conditions so they can heal each other through friendship and advice.

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Inspiration

We all have yearned for people who share parts of our identity that are difficult to grapple with alone. This is especially true for those with complex diagnoses and medical conditions. We have not dealt with these struggles ourselves, but have seen some of our grandparents with chronic illnesses experiencing loneliness and social isolation. Because of this, we wanted to design an app to allow people with medical conditions to find a community where they can support each other.

What it does

MediNet is a mobile app that connects patients experiencing similar medical conditions and helps them understand their diagnoses and prescriptions. When the user creates an account, they are guided through an onboarding process that allows them to select their diagnoses, and, if desired, their location. The user is then added to diagnosis-based chat groups, shown other users with similar conditions, and even offered the opportunity to see connections nearby if they've provided their location.

The app's chat feature allows users to talk in chat groups separated by diagnoses and sub-diagnoses, as well as one-on-one with other users that they wish to connect with. Groups broken down by diagnoses allow for users to have illness-specific discussions, such as methods to alleviate pain in parts of the body. Users can also message other users one-on-one and even meet up with nearby users in-person.

Additionally, users can look up their descriptions and various medicines and find easy-to-read information in MediNet's simplified wiki. MediNet will provide easy-to-understand information on medicines, including side-effects, dosage instructions, and administration information. All this is done with accessible fonts and high-contrast colors to reinforce the goal of making this information more reachable.

How we built it

We used Canva to design our branding and presentation, and we used Figma to design the user interface and map out what the app will look like.

Challenges we ran into

A challenge we ran into was drawing the line between medical advice and community support. To avoid confusion around this, we specifically did not include a feature for users to interact with professionals on the site, which makes clear that the site is for users to connect with others facing similar struggles and receive peer-to-peer support rather than receive professional treatment.

Accomplishments that we’re proud of

We’re very proud of our UI, which is not only aesthetically pleasing but also designed to be accessible to all users, especially those that are older or have visual impairments.

What we learned

We learnt a lot about the challenges people with chronic illnesses often face. We researched a lot of the additional mental health issues that come with receiving a physically-impactful diagnosis, as well as how perscription medicine labels are often ineffective and hard to understand, especially for people above the age of 60.

What's next for MediNet

MediNet is already designed to be scalable, using an LLM-based moderation system for filtering bots and malicious actors from private messages, allowing human moderators to dedicate their time and energy to processing user-reported conversations that require additional review. We hope to expand the userbase of MediNet by connecting with hospitals and medical care providers who can promote the app to patients looking for a way to cope and receive support for their diagnoses.

Built With

  • figma
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