Past Work
A sample of case studies and projects
Patient Experience Diary Studies
We conducted multiple ethnographic diary studies—with phone interviews before and after—to understand the day-to-day experiences of patients living with various chronic conditions. Over a 2-week period, participants submitted notes, photos, and videos from their smartphones in response to task prompts. The prompts covered topics including symptom fluctuation, treatment regimen, diet, living environment, relationships, and support system. In the post-study phone interviews, we dove deeper into topics of interest from the diary study, and explored participants’ attitudes toward various new treatment options.
We synthesized the insights from this research into deliverables including an illustrated report, personas, use environment description, user needs documentation, and an experience map.
*These projects were completed while Benjamin was an employee of UL-Wiklund.
HF Support and Validation Testing
Various flexible endoscopes
Endoscopes must be thoroughly reprocessed between patient procedures to prevent cross-contamination and infection. The complexity of these devices can make this a challenging process, which has resulted in widespread infection outbreaks in the past. Benjamin contributed to full-service human factors support for several of these devices, including conducting a Known Problems Analysis, conducting multiple usability tests to validate reprocessing technique and instructional materials, and preparing the HFE report for FDA submission.
*These projects were completed while Benjamin was an employee of UL-Wiklund.
Context Research for Innovation
We conducted mixed-methods research, including word-associations, “extreme user” interviews, card sorting, and a survey to understand and characterize consumers’ value preferences for various products.
All research activities were conducted intercept-style in shopping malls and other commercial establishments.
BuyingRight Web App
We prototyped three potential interfaces for a novel online shopping web app that helps users build personalized “value profiles” and receive tailored product recommendations.
We conducted “discount usability testing” and a heuristic review to evaluate the initial prototypes and inform a redesign of the UI.
Rehabilitative Play Controllers
For his undergraduate honors thesis, Benjamin supported the development of novel play controllers for neuromuscular rehabilitation. He planned and moderated play session trials with children ages 5 - 13 to assess usability, data collection feasibility, and inform the controller / game design. Benjamin also re-designed the UI prototype for connecting the controller to a PC for playing computer games.