Last summer, I said I want to explore the healthcare industry before I graduate and I did. I thought the healthcare industry needs a lot of experience or professional knowledge, the problem we are solving is deep and tough. But now I realized that as designers, we still can do a lot for people.

I have been talking to Liam every week, our conversations started by explaining what insulin pump is and how people use it going to discussing about the future of type 1 diabetes. I am so glad that I got this opportunity to work with these industry experts, and talk to all these patients.

Different from other people's senior thesis, working with a start-up has pros and cons. The hardest part I would say is balancing the business and design decisions. We all know what we are solving the right problem, but one thing that goes back and forth is choosing the right audience --- our users. Teenagers have bigger problems with T1D management while young 20s are more willing to participate and follow our guidance. Even though I followed our design principle and focused more on the teenager's and parents' side, the real business went to partner insulin or insurance companies and offer rewards for young 20s. This is a little bit tricky, and I am also wondering if I am the designer in the team, I would definitely feel lost. For me, the design is always about solving the right problem. But in order to solve the problem, understanding the problem, and understanding the company's constrains or capabilities are very important. And this is what I learned the most during this semester. Saying no to them is not that easy, because I also want to help them to achieve their mission and goals. And Kate helped me so much (Thank you, Kate☺️).

I remember on my very first project proposal, I listed out the timeline -- I should have a design delivery and 1 design iteration before the semester ends. But now I already did 5+ times iterations including terminologies, onboarding flow, and reward choices. To be honest, this semester is a very good and helpful experience for me to grow as a designer. I learned more than I expected. Thank you for your support and happy holiday! ❤️