A Case Study of User Experience Design in a Disrupted Context: Design and Development of a Vital Signs Self-monitoring System

We present a case study where we developed an interface for remote vital signs self-monitoring at a large-scale isolation facility for COVID-positive patients, under disrupted conditions. These conditions were: a lack of time, lack of access to end users, changing requirements, high risk of infection and supply chain limitations. We first describe the background of the development of the facility and the vital signs self-monitoring system. We use the 5 commonly prescribed activities of user experience design - Empathise, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test- to describe how our work as user experience designers was affected by these disrupted conditions. Finally, we recommend a focus on Empathy, Prototyping and Communication for user experience practitioners and educators, whose training may be needed in similarly mission-critical, time-constrained circumstances.