Recently, I led the redesign of a health service in response to Royal Commission findings. š·
A key recommendation of the Commission was that the design of future services included āLived Experience participantsā - that is, the services should be designed in consultation with the consumers, families, carers and supporters who use a system. šThey are, afterall, experts in what is currently working, what needs to change and how to best meet their needs.
The project was extremely rewarding - we worked closely with people who benefit most from transformed services - but it was also challenging. The services needed to change, and so did the work-practices of those designing them.š·As with any ground-breaking work, we learned things weād do differently next time.
Here are 10 important tips for designing with Lived Experience participants.
š„Take time to onboard Lived Experience participants, facilitators and designers. Each group needs to learn about the other, so ensure people have the emotional space and time to understand the context, appropriate use of language, engagement frameworks and the subject matter. Itāll save you time in the end.
Also allow the time to identify and onboard suitable participants. Ensure they are equipped with the skills necessary to meaningfully participate. If they arenāt, provide training.š§āš
Prior to kick off, set up briefing sessions for facilitators, scribes and designers, if possible including peer support workers and Lived Experience participants. Run a pre-mortem: what could go wrong and how do we avoid it?
Be cognizant of how power imbalances can make Lived Experience participants feel uncomfortable and unable to contribute on equal terms. šThese feelings are usually amplified if they lack training and appropriate skills. (We decided to run separate sessions with policy experts and health practitioners for this reason.)
If workshops are remote, collaborative tools such as Miro are your friend! Not only do scribes and facilitators need to be able to use them competently, but any training you do with Lived Experience participants will be repaid - theyāll feel included and enabled to actively participate in design sessions. šØ
Provide safe breakout rooms, virtual or in-person, with access to peer support for facilitators and participants. These may not be needed but just knowing theyāre there provides psychological safety.
ā³Build in time to debrief after discussing potentially triggering material. Facilitators, scribes and designers need this as much as Lived Experience participants. If the subject matter is particularly confronting, provide access to psychological support for those who need extra help. The aim of the process is to help people, not damage them or force them to end their participation.
Take it slowly. Design managers will need to check in with their team more often. Accommodate the need for facilitators and designers to have an extra day off now and then to decompress, especially after workshops. Reconsider placing designers and managers on challenging projects back-to-back. They might need time to process the experience.
After each workshop gather feedback š from participants, facilitators and designers. Continue to refine engagement frameworks in response to the findings. Demonstrate how feedback is being used to refine the process.
Finally, provide feedback to Lived Experience participants on the impact of their contributions to the design of future services and products. Involving Lived Experience participants means that you value their input - donāt make them feel the process was tokenistic by failing to share outcomes. ā
When executed sensitively, engagement with Lived Experience participants can create faster and more effective pathways to service transformation along with better user experiences, as vital frontline feedback is included during design, not as lengthy and costly revision to it. But doing so does require new skills, some extra preparation time, engagement frameworks, and a considered approach. Remember: āNothing about us, without us, is for usā. š