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Flourish

Flourish is an immersive, interactive installation designed to facilitate support the well-being and resilience of the hospital’s healthcare workers through movement-based experiences.

CLIENT

Michigan Medicine

TIMELINE

2023

ROLE

UX Designer & Developer
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CONTEXT

Pinpointing the need

Flourish targets ICU nursing professionals who face significant challenges with stress, burnout, and cognitive fatigue. This intervention is designed to provide meaningful relief throughout their demanding shifts, offering moments of respite from the mental, emotional, and physical strain inherent to critical care environments. 

CHALLENGE

Tackling burnout

We spoke with the hospital staff and found that:

  • Physical fatigue - They are highly mobile throughout their shifts

  • Flexible restoration - They value flexible break options, including brief moments of respite

  • Environmental transitions - They benefit from dedicated spaces for relaxation and recovery

  • Cognitive refreshment - A need for effective techniques to reset mental clarity 

SOLUTION

Recovery spaces

Flourish emerged through rigorous iteration grounded in continuous user feedback from healthcare teams and leadership. We conducted both in-person and remote testing to validate that our solution addressed authentic clinical challenges.

Drawing on Attention Restoration Theory and established research on physical activity's mental health benefits, we developed targeted interventions for healthcare environments. The resulting solution offers strategic moments throughout the workday to address cognitive exhaustion, physical fatigue, and stress—creating meaningful relief tailored specifically to healthcare professionals' unique needs.
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CONTRIBUTION

Developing modules

I spearheaded the design and development of two core experiences within Flourish: Ocean Flow and Cosmic Waves, each created in response to healthcare workers' specific feedback. For Ocean Flow, I crafted a Tai Chi-inspired journey featuring gentle movements, mindful breathing techniques, and meditative elements that help users reduce anxiety and sharpen their focus during breaks.

With Cosmic Waves, I designed a more passive experience using soothing visuals and flowing motion patterns that let tired minds disengage from constant decision-making and recover naturally. Both modules translated scientific principles into practical stress-relief tools that healthcare staff could easily integrate into their hectic workdays. 
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Final notes

We successfully designed and deployed Flourish at Michigan Medicine after extensive testing and user-centered development. Through methodical prototyping and continuous feedback integration, we refined the solution to specifically address healthcare practitioners' wellbeing needs. 

Post-implementation assessments demonstrated measurable improvements in staff cognitive performance and significant reductions in reported stress levels, validating our approach and confirming the intervention's effectiveness in real clinical environments.
  • Evidence-Based Development — Comprehensive testing with actual healthcare professionals provided crucial insights that shaped the final product design and ensured relevance to real clinical challenges.
  • Measurable Wellbeing Impact — Data showed concrete improvements in staff alertness and stress reduction, confirming the intervention achieves its core objectives in practice.
  • User-Driven Refinement — Iterative improvements based on practitioner feedback resulted in a solution precisely tailored to the demands of healthcare environments.

CONTACT

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