Illumina – CLIA

Illumina is a leading biotechnology enterprise that specializes in designing, producing, and promoting advanced integrated systems for the comprehensive analysis of genetic variation and biological function. Their extensive range of products and services cater to diverse markets including sequencing, genotyping, gene expression, and proteomics, among others.

Introduction

To ensure clarity and transparency for patients, Illumina has implemented a meticulously executed CLIA Lab Use – Clinician Workflow program. This initiative aims to provide patients with a straightforward and easily understandable explanation of the process, guiding them through each step with clarity and simplicity.

Problem

Here is a process we need to illustrate, described as a set of steps: 

CLIA Lab Use – Clinician Workflow

Clinician
    1. Doctor’s Office: Doctor meets the patient in the office
    2. Doctor’s Office: Decides to order a test
    3. Test Portal (CLIA Lab): Logs to online portal, searches for the test (e.g. for a disease or a gene)
    4. Test Portal (CLIA Lab): Orders sample kit (if it doesn’t exist already)
    5. Paper Form/Physician Portal: Schedules a patient for sample collection (e.g. blood). 
    6. --- some time passes ---
    7. Physician Portal/EMR/Chinook: Receives notification, accesses and views/prints out the report and discusses with patient
    8. EMR: Upload report to patient’s EMR record (if it wasn’t done automatically)

Nurse/Phlebotomy Lab
    1. Lab: Collects sample from patient
    2. Lab: Attaches bar coded labels
    3. Lab: Sends samples to CLIA lab

Lab Director/CLIA
    1. Internal Test Portal: Reviews sample submission
    2. Internal Test Portal: Confirms payment
    3. Internal Test Portal: Submits test for a patient into a pipeline
    4. BaseSpace/LIMS: Reviews progress of a sample through prep, sequencing, analysis
    5. Chinook: Reviews and signs off a report
    6. Chinook: Notification goes out to clinician (directly or via portal)
    7. Phone: Provides consultation to clinician if necessary

Lab Operator/CLIA
    1. LIMS/Test Portal: Receives request for sample processing 
    2. Physical: Picks up the sample performs Sample Prep
    3. BaseSpace/LIMS: Sets up sample manifest (with sample bar codes) and preps sequencer run
    4. Physical: Loads the sequencer
    5. BaseSpace/LIMS: Reviews progress of sequencing run

Not only it is a lot to read through, but all the steps are also intertwined in a certain way that is not visible from the text representation.

Audience

Here are some key points to consider when providing healthcare information to patients and healthcare professionals:

  • The audience is likely to be adults, so the information should be appropriate for a mature audience.
  • The audience may be confused by the complex healthcare system, so the information should be clear and simple.
  • The audience may be anxious and vulnerable due to their health condition, so the information should be presented in a reassuring and empathetic manner.
  • It is crucial to make the audience feel cared for and supported by presenting information with sensitivity and attention to emotional needs.

Approach

Let’s start with the first draft.

There are a lot of issues with this one.

  • We still have to read a lot of text;
  • There are certain stages (like Lab Director) that are present twice on the scheme, which is confusing;
  • The entire infographic looks unbalanced and simply boring.

Let’s make another attempt taking into account all we know about the audience and all the flaws of the first version. What I decided to do is to make it a patient journey – help them to see step by step what they’re going through.

This patient-centered approach to healthcare infographic design is an effective way to make complex information more accessible and engaging for patients. By focusing on the patient’s journey and breaking it down into separate “circles,” we can create a visually appealing and easy-to-follow guide.

This approach allows us to highlight specific areas of interest while keeping the overall patient journey in mind. This makes it easier for patients to understand and stay engaged throughout the process.

Overall, this approach prioritizes the patient’s needs and helps make healthcare information more accessible and understandable.

Colors and Style

To create a design that is mindful of patients’ anxiety and confusion, I have chosen a muted set of Illumina brand colors that are calming and not overly stimulating. The style features simplified, light-hearted illustrations and icons that are easy to understand and reduce the risk of overwhelming patients.

It’s important to strike a balance between a design that is approachable and not overly childish. To ensure this balance is achieved, the client will test the images on focus groups to gather feedback and make any necessary adjustments.

Overall, this design approach prioritizes patients’ needs and aims to reduce anxiety and confusion when engaging with healthcare information.

Rendering

I started creating the infographic by adding a text label for each step on the printed version to provide additional context. For the online version, I removed the text labels and replaced them with pop-ups, which simplified the design and made it more interactive for users.

The infographic underwent revisions during development to align it with the patient’s perspective of the process they are going through. As a result, I was able to restructure the graphic, giving it a more geometrical layout for improved visual clarity and versatility across various formats.

Result

The final version of the infographic effectively displays the patient’s journey through each stage of the process, incorporating a logical structure and effective visual presentation while also demonstrating emotional empathy.

Credits