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About the Project
Systems Design .
Telehealth .
I worked with Philips Healthcare as part of my graduation project to reduce respiratory morbidity and mortality rate in children caused by Acute Respiratory Infections (ARIs) like asthma and bronchitis. Having suffered from acute bronchitis myself when I was six months old, I endeavoured to translate my experience into a tangible outcome to serve underprivileged masses.
I was there!
Trust me! Improving my situation helped my parents breathe better.
I was 6 months old when I was diagnosed with acute bronchitis. The ailment was a part of my life for another two to three years. I had suffered through the pain and more than me my parents did. Through this project, I wish to translate my experience into a tangible outcome to serve the underserved masses.
Its about building a better immunity
It’s impossible to stay away from viruses and bacteria but certain factors make you more susceptible to ARI’s. The immune system of children and older adults are more prone to being affected by the virus.
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Studies have shown respiratory muscle training after or before one has contracted an infection reduces the need for medication by up to 86%.
Turns out there were a lot more families like mine.
There are three stages in the patient journey with relation to ARI’s. These infections include a spectrum of severity within it as a result, majority of the milder infection goes severe in the absence of proper care. The stages help to identify when and what steps should be taken by the patient or the doctor to curb ARI'S.
I never knew about lung Excercises when i was ill
Secondary Research
Current methods of rehabilitation
Current interventions/ devices mainly revolve around the idea of treatment and methods of rehabilitation mainly involve controlling the severity of ARI's. Research shows that these methods are not so popular amongst kids and as a result, it's tricky to get compliance from kids.
Hence, making the process fun will get the kid's compliance to make them healthier and prevent contraction of ARI'S.
Primary Research
Schools were a great
starting point .
Visiting a lot of schools and learning from the teachers themselves opened my eyes to the impact ARI'S had on the kids and how that affected their education.
Health care camps .
We learnt from the school teachers that health care camps were conducted once a month but they didn't include tests for pulmonary functions.
Insights
Observations From
My Research .
• The occurrence of ARI’s was a very common phenomenon amongst kids at school.
• These diseases affected their studies and resulted in them being absent from school.
• Very few families and teachers knew about methods to deal with ARI’s because awareness was low.
• Healthcare camps didn't include tests for respiratory illnesses.
• Teachers and families only resolved treatments for ARI’s as they were ignorant about preventive methods.
How might we create a system that is prevention forward and enables teachers and doctors to monitor kids health and prevent the onset of ARI's.
Design Strategy
3'E' Approach
Based on the try-outs and their observation I adopted a 3E approach. Exercising being the core for it will be supported by education and entertainment. ARI'S can be prevented with regular exercising that can strengthen the lungs of children.
External Stakeholders
How ?
For Whom ?
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Involvement of teachers and kids of government schools.
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Imparting health through education.
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For kids under the age of 6.
Central Idea
Applications
Of The Blowpens .
As a child, I used to love using blow pens. It mimics a yoga exercise where you inhale deeply and exhale out with pursed lips. This builds pressure in the lungs and exercises them.
Relation between Ink and Nib
Ink viscosity and the nib porosity contributes majorly to the pressure build up inside the blow pen.
Try Outs- User research
Understanding Behaviour.
Lung Capacity. Breathing.
To try out the idea I went to several pre-schools to test out kids under the age of 6. I went there with the objective of finding out their lung capacity, strength, what they understand of breathing and to study their behaviour.
Key Components
Of The System.
6 Deliverables .
To support the 3E approach an ecosystem had to be built around the use of blow pens. This would ensure compliance from various stakeholders involved.
Blow Pen Adaptation
Identification . Safety .
Ergonomics .
The system demanded a few changes in the design of the blow pen and a few tweaks were made to fit it well in the ecosystem.
Monitoring Tool
Lung Capacity . Data .
Progress Checks .
Combination of the blow-pen and the monitoring device works like a peak-flow meter.
LUNG TEST - The variation you see here in the form of ink is picked up by the sensor and converted into
a graph.
User journey for the first time exercising and lung test
User journey for a normal test vs a patient test
A 3-D printed model of the peak flow device.
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