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PT-PAL
Helping patients take control of their physical rehabilitation journeys.
Overview
An end-to-end in-home exercise tracking system that helps physical therapy patients stay on track with exercise programming and stay connected with providers to accelerate mobility outcomes.
Timeline
Teammates
2023
UCSF & Colombia school of PT
Contributions
UX Research, Product Design & Strategy
Onboarding
Members are invited by their provider to join PTPAL, verify their identity, and are welcomed with a concise overview of the platform's features and usage.
TV Pairing
Members can pair the app with their TV for a more immersive workout experience, improving visibility and focus on proper form during exercises.
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Guided Workouts
Members can follow guided exercise videos to ensure they perform exercises correctly at home.
Mirrored workouts
Members receive visual cues, track sets and reps, and get real-time audio feedback for corrections during exercises.
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Exercise Details
Members can log workout details, such as reps and pain levels, to share with their provider.
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Exercise Submissions
After workouts, members can leave feedback, share videos for review, and message their provider anytime using the in-app messaging service to stay connected.
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Progress Overview
Over time, members can track recovery progress, review achievements, and monitor goal-based improvements.
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What was the initial motivation?
In the Winter of 2021, I endured a major knee injury that shaped much of my college experience. While I eventually recovered with help from my physicians and physical therapists, the journey was challenging, marked by a lengthy recovery, confusion over exercises, and anxiety from inconsistent programming. These challenges highlighted significant gaps in the physical therapy space that needed to be addressed.
In addition in 2023, the physical therapy software market was valued at USD 1.1 billion. With few well-designed solutions offering real-time guidance between PT sessions, I expected my product to make a significant impact within this market.
What did I learn through research?
I interviewed a diverse group of patients and physical therapists to understand their experiences and challenges. The patients had varying ailments, fitness levels, and life stages, from athletes to those with little exercise experience. Here are the insights I gathered:
01.
Lack of Motivation Therapists normally notice a plateau in patient motivation when their body start feeling “normal”. This often leads to a distruption in their exercise programming and prolonged recoverys.
02.
More Accountability Therapists want more ways to track progress outside of therapy sessions and Patients lack a concise way to track and report their workouts leading to lack of consistency.
03.
More guidance Patients want more guidance and feedback when performing PT at home to ensure proper form
How might we educate patients on the value of Physical Therapy and help them stay motivated and accountable with their exercise programming throughout their recovery
How did I get started with designs?
I brainstormed key features for the ideal experience and used a prioritization matrix to evaluate them based on impact and effort. This helped me define design goals to focus on for the MVP.
01.
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Enable patients to view their daily exercises in a concise manner
Enable PT's to track their patients workout consistency
Enable patients to receive detailed info on how to perform their exercises at home (i.e exercise details, audio guidance, etc)
Enable patients to input performance feedback on workouts (i.e report sets, reps, discomfort, etc)
Enable patients to track their recovery over time to have a better understanding of how they are progressing
Version 1 : Mobile App + Watch
The first version featured a mobile app paired with an Apple Watch app to provide users more autonomy while following the app's guidance.
Feedback & Insights
01.
There were concerns about balancing feedback between the mobile app and the watch app, especially whether the watch was needed to keep the patient in sync with the mobile app without being redundant.
02.
Screen space could be better used for information display. Pop-up screens for guided videos and exercise details lacked visual hierarchy, overwhelming users with too many input tabs and details.
03.
Users felt videos helped with exercise recall but lacked confidence in performing them correctly. They expressed interest in receiving feedback in real-time in addition to videos.
Version 2 : TV
Based on feedback, I tested a new version of the concept on a TV interface, allowing patients to watch themselves perform exercises in real time alongside guided videos.
Feedback & Insights
01.
I worked with physical therapists to create a concept that uses AI and 3D projections to track exercises and give real-time feedback, improving the accuracy of home training.
02.
Some participants felt the UI resembled a touchscreen device, prompting me to review TV UI guidelines for better design alignment.
Final Version
I designed an experience using existing home technologies, combining three devices: a motion-tracking camera with lidar sensors, a mobile phone for feedback, and a TV to display video footage of the patient.
A few of the wireframes from the final version
Creating a design system
I designed a modern, sleek system tailored to my main user group: millennial and Gen Z busy professionals.
Mapping out the system
With core interactions defined, I mapped out the final version of PTPAL, including key features like onboarding, home page, exercise details, TV workouts, and progress summaries for wireframing.
Product Demo
Reflections
This project was both the most challenging and rewarding of my undergraduate career. It has shaped my passion as a designer, particularly in how interaction design can foster connection. If given the opportunity, I’d love to test this product in a real-world setting to see how it performs and truly impacts users.
Key metrics I would track include: User engagement (frequency and duration of use), exercise adherence (completion rates), real-time feedback accuracy (user-reported confidence), and overall recovery progress (user satisfaction and health outcomes).
t’s surreal to think this project marks the end of my time at the California College of the Arts. I’m incredibly grateful for the support from my peers and teachers throughout this journey.
design by Mita Elan © 2024​