The chemo bag

Program “You get reminded of your illness all the time when you are at the hospital, but I don’t in the same way when I’m home..”

BY: Isabel Aagaard, Xénia Geller, Melanie Povlitzki and Rie Maktabi Co-Design KADK

Intro “Home is best” is the first Danish attempt to offer chemotherapy treatments at home using a programmable pump, thereby avoiding hospitalization.

Since 2013 three nurses from Rishospitalet in Copenhagen have worked hard to move chemotherapy away from the hospital bedside and into the patients’ homes. Home chemotherapy treatment has a proven positive effect on patients’ quality of life, as it enables them to continue their daily routine despite the invasive treatment. During the treatment, the patient is attached to a chemotherapy pump (typically housed in a bag), which for a temporary period of time becomes a part of the patient’s body. We want to explore how this potentially unwelcomed extension of the patient’s body affects them in an everyday setting. Moreover, we wish to experiment with different exploratory methods and develop a design that supports the patient and enables them to maintain their daily rhythm.

Although the first steps towards home chemotherapy treatment have been taken, this new method is far from unproblematic. When chemotherapy enters the home, issues of safety, hygiene, usability and service come into play. It is in this space that Co-design can play a role in finding a more effective home treatment solution.

The nurse Katrine Seier Fridthjof, had developed a new treatment with a special infusion pump, which make the hometreatment possible.

Motivation As Co-designers, we believe that innovative design stems from a deep understanding of and interaction with our target group – in this case, leukemia patients.

By working with the patients, we will gain access to sensitive information about their everyday life, which could be very emotional for us and for them, especially considering the severity of the disease they are struggling with. Despite the difficulty of this topic we remind ourselves that the insights gained throughout this process can truly improve the quality of life for many leukemia patients. This potential impact is our primary source of motivation for undergoing this project.

The chemo patient Mette, reads a good book in her hammock in her garden at home, while she is getting her chemo therapy.

By using Co-design methods we aim to to gain a nuanced picture of the patients’ needs and challenges while receiving home chemotherapy treatments.

Employing this highly experimental approach to our design process enables us to remain agile and react to new insights as they come forth. It is precisely this unpredictability that drives us towards fruitful insights, and by meeting each situation with an open mind we are challenged in each step that we take.

Problem statement

How can we create a better home-treatment experience for patients suffering from leukemia?

Theory and theme Our theme this year in the Codesign Master’s Program is “Body Dialogues”, which calls for a greater attention to the body in our design encounters. This project provides a compelling framework for exploring body dialogues, as patients can be connected to the chemo bag for up to 10 days while receiving their treatment. We hope to understand the temporary relationship between the object and the affected body. The bag will thus be regarded as an extension of the body rather than an independent object. We will be examining the body’s dialogue with it’s new “extension” and explore the product based on this dialogue.

The nurse Katrine Seier Fridthjof, intall the special infusion pump, in the chemo patient, Mette.

Working Methods Before we begin, we believe it is crucial for us to understand what Leukemia is. We therefore plan to conduct a brief literature review in order to find out how the disease affects the body, what treatment options are currently available and how they work. Furthermore, we would like to investigate existing examples of successful home therapy and learn from what has already been proven to be efficient. Regarding the technical aspects of the device, we will research materials, textiles (e.g.: non-porous and anti-microbial fabrics) and medical technology that could enhance the design’s functionality, ergonomics and user experience.

Our primary research, however, will be focused on the user within his/her environment (doctors, nurses, family, home etc.) and his/her experience with the disease. In order to gain insights on the user’s everyday experiences with chemotherapy, we are planning to conduct several interviews and document our findings with photographs and short films. Moreover, design tools such as user-journey mapping may help us to pinpoint the struggles that come with using the device.

Alongside our user research, we will invite the participants into the design process by organizing co-creation workshops. Such workshops will aim to include all stakeholders in an effort to envision a better home treatment experience and to develop prototypes of the future device.

A prototype can have various forms and aims...

Expected outcome We intend to deliver a set of design criteria as well as a prototype based on our research, observation and codesign methodologies. Delivering a prototype that strikes a balance between being medically efficient and comfortably accessible to the end user is our goal. Here the symbiosis between the nurses and patients is key.

We envision to not only build a better product, but also to create a more comfortable home treatment experience for both the patient and the people who are part of their environment.

Dates:

Monday

Tuesday

Research and get the group settled

19 - 23 okt

9 - 13 nov 16 - 20 nov

Program

Workshop week

26- 30 okt 2 - 6 nov

Wenesday Thursday Friday

Intro meeting with medical staff. / LAW

LAW R + I

Workshop week /

Meet the patients / Filming and prototyping iteratively.

2nd meeting with the patients / Filming and prototyping

Business R + I

Business R + I

Business R + I

Weawing I

23 - 27 nov

Prototyping week with medical staff

30 - 4 dec

Prototyping week with medical staff and patients

7 - 11 dec

Showing patients hospital films / prototyping again to finale form

14 - 18 dec

PM reading

Repport

Final Prototype / writing repport

21 - 25 dec

Holyday

28 - 1 jan

Holyday

4 - 8 jan 11 - 15 jan

Preparing for the exam week

Exam week

BY: Isabel Aagaard, XĂŠnia Geller, Melanie Povlitzki and Rie Maktabi Co-Design KADK