A NEW CARE ANYWHERE MODEL AND TOOL FOR HEALTHCARE TRANSITIONS
Improving (and systematizing) the process of transitioning patients with autism from pediatric to adult care so they can get care, anywhere
Client/Collaborators
Healthcare providers, administrators, and care coordinators at the Center for Autism Services and Transition (CAST) at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center
Development and Behavior pediatricians, psychologists, and social workers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s Child Development Center
Adults on the autism spectrum and caregivers with children/adults on the autism spectrum
Company/Partner(s)
Sapna Singh, Liz Sanders
Approach
Exploratory/Generative Design Research
Methods/Tools
One-on-one Interviews, CoDesign Sessions, Experience Mapping, Prototyping
OBJECTIVE
Healthcare is one of many areas (in addition to employment, education, and socialization) that can have a big impact on adolescents with autism during transitions. The Center for Autism Services and Transitions (CAST), at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, presented me with an opportunity to understand the unmet needs of their patient population and transitioning adults in the local autism network from pediatric care to adult care.
The primary focus was on identifying opportunities to understand and systematize the transition process to better meet the needs of various key stakeholders (patients, caregivers, and primary care providers), and secondarily, how to create solutions (tools and services in clinic) that would make the clinic sustainable and create true (long-term) value for their patients and caregivers.
OUTCOME
A sense of shared understanding and a collective convergence emerged around priority opportunities that would meet the needs of CAST's growing patient population and sustain the clinic over time.
While redesigning the physical space within the clinic (like the waiting room) was where providers assumed we’d create value, that is not where we ended up. When patients and families were brought into the collaborative conversations, providers and clinic administrators learned that the clinic solutions needed, instead, to address the holistic transition needs of patients (inside and outside the clinic).
Insights gained through interviews and co-design workshops informed the design of a new healthcare transition model and transition toolkit (shown below).
The new process/model and transition tool were projected to:
Increase revenue for the clinic
Add value to the work of an underutilized social worker
Expand access to specialized care and primary care, anywhere for patients with autism
Increase patient engagement in the transition process
PROCESS
Collective Sensemaking Sessions
These sessions brought together key stakeholder groups (CAST providers/administrators and pediatric providers from Nationwide Children's Childhood Development Center, caregivers/families, and patients) to establish a foundational understanding of the current transition process and experience (pain points, gaps, wish-fors) from different angles.
Participatory Design Interviews/Sessions (One-on-One and Group)
Each stakeholder group (patients, caregivers, providers, and administrators) were prompted to not only verbalize current challenges and future wish-fors in interviews/group sessions, but were also encouraged to think and share through making – building out processes/journey maps and constructing new tools/design solutions.
The Current + Future Transition Experience
Visualization of the current transition experience (from the perspective of providers and patients/families) provides a baseline understanding and externalized the process/system of stakeholders to elicit collective discussion around opportunities for improvement.
The future ideal transition process serves as a strategic roadmap, highlighting new solutions/opportunities (parallel care pathways, new in clinic service offerings, and new tools) that can be developed to improve the transition experience.
The Transition Model
Similar to a spinning top, balance is essential among 8 key elements in order to meet the collective needs of patients, caregivers, and providers (General Medicine and Specialists) pre, during, and post transitions.
It is important that the new model of transition:
Create the feeling of ‘forever care’, anywhere
Foster patient engagement and self-advocacy, while also providing a safety net of support and guidance through care coordination
Provide access to resources and facilitate peer-to-peer learning/support opportunities
A New Tool for Transitions
Provide
Creates patient engagement and outlets for self-advocacy
Facilitates open discussion around goals/concerns and shared decision-making for long-term planning
Measures and tracks changes/patterns in patients over time
Educates patients and caregivers in the process of transitions
Encourages goal-setting and mastery of skills for transitioning into adult care and building self-advocacy
Helps to curate a plan of action between care coordinators, caregivers, and patients
