Project Type
Academic
Role
UX Designer
Living with roommates can be an extremely pivotal moment in a young adult’s life. Whether attending a university or joining the workforce, there are many benefits to moving out of your family home. However, there are also many anxieties associated with living independently that are not talked about often enough. Sharing the general upkeep responsibilities of a house with roommates can lead to unnecessary conflicts, creating a negative living environment.
Problem
Solution
This project aims to mitigate these anxieties so young adults can enjoy the benefits of independent living. The app aims to prevent uncomfortable interactions by streamlining many of the responsibilities of living with others. Homi can equally distribute household chores amongst roommates, with minimal conflict.
Research
For this project, I began by researching multiple peer-reviewed journals that examined why and how people forget to take medication on a regular basis.
A study published in this first journal found a correlation between remembering where medication is stored and forgetting to take said medication.
Secondary Research
Among adults with chronic conditions, 60% forget to take their medications occasionally
Forgetting to take medication is often a result of a hectic schedule or putting off getting necessary prescription refills
Sometimes forgetting to take medication may be intentional
Younger age is strongly associated with increased unintentional non-adherence
Forgetting to take medication is often a result of a hectic schedule or putting off getting necessary prescription refills
Specifically, people under 40 were significantly more likely to report that they forget to take their medications.
Unintentional non-adherence to chronic prescription medications: How unintentional is it really?
Abhijit S Gadkari & Colleen A McHorney
Pain Points
Tracking Feels Like Extra Work
“I take this every day—I don’t want to log it every day.”
Logging medication can feel like too much effort
Users would benefit from a logging method that requires minimal effort
“I think I took it… But I’m not sure.”
Cognitive Overload & Reliance on Memory
In a life with many daily responisbilities it can be difficult to remember every part of your daily routine
Solely relying on memory to remember when to take medication can easily lead to skipped doses
App Constraints
A solution to the problem would require all parties to download an app
Roommates could download app and still not uphold their responsibilities
Technical Constraints
A solution needs to be oriented towards the roommate experience
Young people utilize group features on social media more than third-party apps
Social Constraints
A solution must be affordable/free for students living frugally
Certain tasks, such as paying bills, may require the use of a third-party payment service
Business Constraints
Market Research
A key factor in forgetting to take medications is where they are stored.
Even if put in a specific spot or a pill box, it can be incredibly easy to miss medications
When routines are disrupted (travel, crisis, etc) it is a vulnerable moment where people can forget to take their medication
The Impact of Home Medication Management Practices on Medication Adherence
by Lisa Gualtieri ,Meredith Steinfeldt ,Eden Shaveet,Brandon Estime and Meera Singhal
Research
For this project, I began by researching multiple peer-reviewed journals that examined why and how people forget to take medication on a regular basis.
A study published in this first journal found a correlation between remembering where medication is stored and forgetting to take said medication.
Secondary Research
Among adults with chronic conditions, 60% forget to take their medications occasionally
Forgetting to take medication is often a result of a hectic schedule or putting off getting necessary prescription refills
Sometimes forgetting to take medication may be intentional
Younger age is strongly associated with increased unintentional non-adherence
Forgetting to take medication is often a result of a hectic schedule or putting off getting necessary prescription refills
Specifically, people under 40 were significantly more likely to report that they forget to take their medications.
Unintentional non-adherence to chronic prescription medications: How unintentional is it really?
Abhijit S Gadkari & Colleen A McHorney
Pain Points
Tracking Feels Like Extra Work
“I take this every day—I don’t want to log it every day.”
Logging medication can feel like too much effort
Users would benefit from a logging method that requires minimal effort
“I think I took it… But I’m not sure.”
Cognitive Overload & Reliance on Memory
In a life with many daily responisbilities it can be difficult to remember every part of your daily routine
Solely relying on memory to remember when to take medication can easily lead to skipped doses
App Constraints
A solution to the problem would require all parties to download an app
Roommates could download app and still not uphold their responsibilities
Technical Constraints
A solution needs to be oriented towards the roommate experience
Young people utilize group features on social media more than third-party apps
Social Constraints
A solution must be affordable/free for students living frugally
Certain tasks, such as paying bills, may require the use of a third-party payment service
Business Constraints
Market Research
A key factor in forgetting to take medications is where they are stored.
Even if put in a specific spot or a pill box, it can be incredibly easy to miss medications
When routines are disrupted (travel, crisis, etc) it is a vulnerable moment where people can forget to take their medication
The Impact of Home Medication Management Practices on Medication Adherence
by Lisa Gualtieri ,Meredith Steinfeldt ,Eden Shaveet,Brandon Estime and Meera Singhal
Synthesis
User Persona
Expereience Map
User goal: Express to her roommates that the shared responsibilities of living with roommates need to be equally distributed
Ideation
Digital Wireframes
User testing
Goal: Assign the task of mopping the floor to roommate Santiago on January 4th.
Task 1: Go to Medication List
Task 2: Select the add medication button
Task 3: Input the name of the medication
Task 4: Select a form of medication
Task 5: Input reason for taking the medication
Task 6: Select the frequency of doses
Task 7: Input time of required doses
Task 8: Input the duration of medication
Task 9: Confirm the details of medication and add it to the list
Task 1 Revisions
User photos on the home page were changed to checkable boxes to indicate whether a task was completed or not
User testing found that the add task button wasn’t noticeable enough, so icons were made bolder
The roommate’s name was added to the task alongside the time of task
Task 2 Revisions
A pop-up menu label was added to fill the screen space
The close button was made bolder and larger
The border lines were stretched to emphasis the requried actions
Task 3 Revisions
Reorganized the select roommate dropdown selction
Visual Identity
Colour Palette
The purpose of homi is to help roommates keep their living spaces as clean as possible. Keeping this in mind, I believed that a strong teal color would help establish this standard of cleanliness. Other colors, such as green or red, could’ve caused some confusion amongst users. Additionally, I stuck to traditional black and white shades to help keep the app looking as sleek as possible.
App name
The name Homi has multiple meanings that correlate to both the app’s purpose and target demographic. Homie is a popular term used by younger demographics to describe a close friend/acquaintance. I believe that this friendly nickname may make the app less intimidating for new users. Additionally, homeowners often use the adjective homey to describe a comfortable and unique living space. To create the app’s name, I removed the ending of the word homie and replaced it with an I to give it a modern identity. I believe that the name encompasses the collaboration required to create a comfortable living space.
Homi’s logo combines a traditional to-do list on a clipboard alongside a bold typeface. The clipboard indicates to users that the app, at its core, can act as a traditional to-do list. When creating the logo, I tried using different house icons, but in the end, I felt a clipboard better indicated the app’s true purpose. The bold typeface was chosen as it better suits the urgency of what the app is used for. Homi’s branding needs to be bold, as it requires staying engaged with the app routinely.
