• The healthcare industry is in crisis and facing a paradigm shift. The good news is there are plenty of opportunities for innovation within this crisis.

February 3, 2014 — Today’s lifestyles are out of balance and we are putting ourselves at risk with unhealthy habits. We are aging as a population and more likely to suffer from chronic diseases as we grow older. Our healthcare systems are buckling under the demand for costly and complicated care. In short, the healthcare industry is in crisis and facing a paradigm shift. The good news is there are plenty of opportunities for innovation within this crisis.

ROBRADY design has developed a people-focused innovation approach for product design. “It is an approach that is driven by qualitative research, applies design thinking and leverages design skills to develop solutions,” says Robert Karnick, design research manager at ROBRADY medical. “Our process is about humanizing healthcare and providing solutions that resonate with the user and supports our clients’ business goals.” Advances in technology are creating entirely new categories of health-related products. Home healthcare is the convergence of medical devices and consumer products. An example is Caregiver Watch, an Alzheimer and Autism monitoring system that provides independence for the patient and supports the needs of the caregiver by reducing worry, enabling positive sleep and allowing a return to a normal lifestyle.

Before beginning any product development program, it is important to understand not only the needs of the user, but ALL of the stakeholders. “We consider everyone that touches the product” says Karnick. “The doctor, the nurse, the caregiver, concerned family members—it has to meet all of their needs.” At ROBRADY, we start with a deep understanding of people, uncover opportunities, generate product concepts, create prototypes, test our concepts and, ultimately, create a tangible solution that is ready for production.