Firefighter Support - Thesis Defense by Phylandra McFaddin

FIREFIGHTER SUPPORT A mobile app to uphold firefighters’ mental toughness

UXD Thesis Defense Documentation Phylandra McFaddin Spring 2021

CONTENTS

Abstract........................................................................................7 Stakeholders................................................................................8 Detailed Description...................................................................9

Business Requirements Mission.........................................................................................13 Short and Long Term Goals.......................................................14 Objectives and Success Metrics................................................15 SWOT Analysis............................................................................16 Growth Strategy..........................................................................17 Business Model Canvas.............................................................18

UX Practices/Documentation Research Strategy...................................................................... 22 Competitive Analysis................................................................. 28 Sitemap, MoSCoW.................................................................... 30 Persona Development............................................................... 31 Journey Map.............................................................................. 32 Wireframes................................................................................. 34 User testing plans & scripts................................................ 36, 38 Insights and Feedback........................................................ 37, 39

Branding Moodboard............................................................................................. 42 Style Guide / UI Kit................................................................................. 44 UI Designs............................................................................................... 46 Web-based Prototype (XD/InVision)..................................................... 48 Future Recommendations..................................................................... 49

Development Planning Functional Requirements & Development Practices........................... 52 Content & Data Requirements - Database Design............................. 53 Information Architecture........................................................................ 54

Essays COVID-19 Response............................................................................... 58 Ethics & Social Impact............................................................................ 58 Graduate Experience Reflection........................................................... 60

Candidate Details Candidate Bio......................................................................................... 64 Resume.................................................................................................... 65 Select Works........................................................................................... 66

Bibliography............................................................................................ 68

Abstract This project explores how traumatic experiences impact firefighters’ mental health. Through preliminary research, I confirmed that firefighters face stigma related barriers which increase their chances of experiencing anxiety, depression, PTSD, and suicidal ideation. To address these mental and behavioral issues, I designed and tested a mobile platform that will allow firefighters to process their trauma in a community environment and get support from their peers.

Stakeholders Neil Harner, Advisor Director of M.S. User Experience & Interaction Design, and Assistant Professor Thomas Jefferson University Mike Begley, Advisor Adjunct Professor Thomas Jefferson University Lauren Bauer, Advisor Adjunct Professor Thomas Jefferson University

Detailed Description This project examines the impact that repeated exposure to trauma has on a firefighter’s mental health. To combat those effects, I’ve designed a mobile app centered around providing firefighters with online support through peer chat and discussion boards. This problem arose while I was originally interviewing firefighters about improving the communication between them and 911 dispatchers. However in the first couple of interviews, I noticed that firefighters were reliving trauma that they didn’t fully process when I asked about the last time they didn’t receive sufficient information from a 911 dispatcher. Within their answers, I noticed they used terms such as “decompress” “desensitize” and “repress.” I decided to pivot my research and look more into firefighters and their mental health. Before finishing my interviews, I continued with my secondary research so I could better understand the gravity of this problem. Though considered an understudied topic, firefighters have the highest suicidal ideation rate compared to the general population. There have been initiatives taken to solve this problem such as mandatory critical incident stress management (CISM), and different mental health programs within different city departments. Yet there are no studies on whether initiatives such as those have been successful in decreasing mental and behavioural issues among firefighters. After interviewing 12 participants and gathering quantitative data from my secondary research I was able to confirm that firefighters face stigma related barriers, preventing them from discussing their trauma, thus increasing their chances of experiencing anxiety, depression, PTSD, and suicidal ideation. What led me to designing Firefighter Support, is that through my research I was able to conclude two major insights: firefighters prefer to talk to their peers rather than anyone else and they are afraid of being perceived as weak and would like to remain anonymous. Firefighter Support will allow firefighters to create a private or public account to be able to confidentially and comfortably engage in a safe space discussion about their on the job experiences. They have the option of getting group support through discussion boards, or by connecting with a peer and being able to chat with them privately, one on one.

BUSINESS REQUIREMENTS 11

“Your worst is a firefight everyday.” 12

st day ter’s Mission Firefighter Support knows how important it is that firefighters have access to a safe space where they can discuss their experiences. Through this platform, firefighters will have the ability to reduce stress that comes with experiencing traumatic events, all while having their mental toughness upheld by an online community. With the option to have a private or public profile, firefighters can gain support through group discussion boards and by chatting one on one with a peer support member. Firefighter’s are major components in our society and it’s time we uplift and support their mental health.

Short Term Goals • Give firefighters a completely confidential platform to discuss mental health challenges. • Giving purpose to retired and off-duty firefighters. • Provide firefighters with a 24/7 anon support system. • Reduce firefighter stress to prevent mental or behavioral changes. • Partner with 3 city departments • Have at least 150 “peer support” profiles • Have 100 “looking for support” profiles

Long Term Goals • Adding additional features • Adding a personal audio journal, which could be shareable between peer buddy and user • Having a mood and PTSD assessment score tracker • Having popular topics monitored by a mental health specialist • Allow posts to be seen by community or to be kept private like a journal. • Making app accessible to other first responders, such as police officers, healthcare workers • Collect data to see if this platform is helpful in reducing mental and behavioral issues among firefighters • To be a known resource to firefighters/fire departments across the country

Objectives • Create an online community that will allow firefighters to feel safe to disclose their experiences. • Allowing firefighters whether off duty or retired to ability to give support to currently active firefighters. • Ensuring that firefighters posts and conversations will be confidential by giving them an option to have a private profile. • Giving firefighters two options to seek support, through a group format such as discussion boards or one on one with a peer support member.

Success Metrics • Decrease in stress: See an improvement with user’s moods after chatting with the peer support members. • Number of users: More downloads, user profiles mean that firefighters want a platform to use for their mental health. • 30% Retention Rate: If a users keeps coming back at least weekly and is active in participating in discussion boards and one on one chats will tell us that the app is successful in helping minimize the problem.

SWOT Analysis Strengths: • • • • • • •

Can choose to hide their identity or to make it public Offers group support in a form of discussion boards The ability to chat one on one with someone of their choice Chat messages can disappear after 24 hours to make user feel safer Ability to filter through peer support members based on religion and martial status Can be accessed 24/7 Gives purpose to retired and off duty firefighters

Weaknesses: • No involvement of a mental health specialist to moniter important/popular topics • Doesn’t verify if the user is actually a firefighter • Currently only able to privately chat with one peer support user at a time instead of chating to multiple or chatting privately with any user • No tracking of PTSD assessment scores or shift mood levels • Allowing private accounts to give support might ruin safe space credibility

Threats:

Opportunities:

• Online bullying • Firefighters won’t think this app will be helpful for their mental health • Doxxing • Heavily relies on user participation

• Expanding to other first responders, such as police officers, healthcare workers • Incorporating mental health specialists to monitoring popular discussion boards • Adding features that are listed in long term goals

Growth Strategy In order to help expand the support that this platform gives, it would be necessary to continue to partner with city fire departments. Instead of going to each fire station, it’s best to contact program oversees within city departments, so that it will be implemented throughout all stations. As well as educating firefighters about this platform at the mental health workshops and trainings. Once we believe that we have reached our set number of fire department partnerships, we can work on extending and redesigning this platform to serve the needs of other first responders, such as EMT, healthcare workers, and police officers.

Business Model Canvas Key Partners • City fire departments: all fire stations within city departments • Firefighter Unions • National Volunteer Fire Council • International Association of Firefighters (USA & Canada) • U.S. Fire Administration

Key Activities • UX Research • Collecting data on whether firefighters have reduced stress after communicating with their peers about their experiences • Research on firefighters mental health • Advocating to support mental health within fire cultre

Key Resources

• • • • •

UX/UI Designer and Researcher - $55,000 2/3 Developers -$60,000 each Marketing Consultant (part-time) 24,000 Therapy Consultant (part-time) 15,000 Physical: Computers for WFH: $5,000

Customer Segments Cost Structure • Fixed: Salaries, Tech equipment, Grants

• Firefighters (on duty, off duty, retired)

Value Propositions • A confidential platform to discuss mental health challenges. • A platform to dicuss how on the job experiences • Ability to connect to a peer support member and/or talk in a discussion boards • Giving purpose to retired and off-duty firefighters. • Provide firefighters with a 24/7 anon support system. • Reduce firefighter stress to prevent mental or behavioral changes.

Customer Relationships

• Online community participation through group discussion boards • User interacting with peer support members • Understanding if the user is meeting their goal of decreasing stress, by use of mood slider on home page and after chatting with peer support member.

Channels

• App Store • Through physical (poster) advertisements throughout firehouses, trainings, and conventions • Digital advertisements through key partners websites

Revenue Stream

• Grants: SAMHSA - Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration SM-18-009 Individual Grant Mental Health First Aid 19

UX DOCUMENTATION 21

Research Strategy Secondary Research Out of the 13 sources, these three articles helped me understand the gravity of the problem. To view the other sources, check out my completed annoated bibliography.

Correlates of Suicidality in firefighter/EMS Personnel. (Martin, Tran)

Mental Health Service Use Among Firefighters With Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors. (Hom, Stanley)

Enhancing Mental Health Treatment for the Firefighter Population... (Johnson, Vega)

30% of firefighters use alcohol to numb the pain and memories of incidents on the job, which adds to the higher levels of anxiety, depression, and PTSD. 13% of police officers had suicidal ideation compared to 46% of firefighters. If firefighters also make EMS calls, they are 6 times more likely to have a suicide attempt.

Stigma related barriers: concerns about being treated differently, appearing weak, harmed reputation, being blamed, etc.

Firefighters preferred to discuss their issues among their peers rather than the other resources such as CISD/M, “informal discussion of the event back at station, no intervention, or one-to-one debriefing by a peer counselor.”

Firefighter Suicide Rates

https://www.delmarvanow.com/story/ life/2019/09/23/firefighter-suicide-mental-health-culture-maryland-delaware-virginia-salisbury/1300515001/

• Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance has been tracking suicide rates since 2009 - 2019. Data is limited though because it is voluntarily given by family members. • As more mental health resources became available within the fire department and overall society, as well as the overall stigma of mental health decreased, the suicide rate increased. Possbily because more family members felt comfortable in giving the alliance that information or it just so happens that more firefighters are committing suicide.

Primary Research I interviewed 10 active firefighters with different rankings. I was able to speak to a psychologhist who speiclaizes in patients with PTSD and currently providing services specifically to firefighters. I was also able to talk to the Deputy Chief of Safety and Performance, who currently oversees mental health initiatives in the Dallas Fire Department. Since I made my pivot from improving communication between 911 dispatchers and firefighters, I adjusted my questions to make sure they weren’t too mental health specific, considering the stimga around mental health.

Interview Questions These are the first set of interview questions that helped me undercover the mental health aspect 1. Can you walk me through how you are informed about a 911 call? 2. 3. 4. 5.

What are the next steps after being informed about an emergency situation? Can you explain challenges you face when receiving information from the dispatcher? Can you tell me about the last time you didn’t receive sufficient information? Can you describe the last emergency situation that went wrong and the emotions you felt? 6. How do you think it could have gone better? Questions 4 and 5 is what triggered the interview subjects to talk about the trauma they experience on the job. They organically opened up about how they supress or handle their emotions. Since I knew that these questions triggered those type of responses, I kept the same questions, but added some follow up ones as I finished my interviews. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Can you walk me through how you are informed about a 911 call? What are the next steps after being informed about an emergency situation? How do you mentally prepare for the run? Can you explain challenges you face when receiving information from the dispatcher? Can you tell me about the last time you didn’t receive sufficient information? Can you describe the emotions you feel when you don’t have all the information vs when you do? 7. Can you describe the last emergency situation that went wrong and the emotions you felt? 8. How do you handle the emotions after a run? 9. What do you think would help you decompress after a stressful or traumatic run? 10. Do you think if you knew exactly what you were going into, would make the situation less traumatic/stressful? Or easier to process? 11. Have you used the resources that the dept provides like EAP? 12. Is there a reason why you don’t use the sources that the dept has provided? Such as EAP?

Affinity Map - Common Themes Dispatchers are limited to the information they can pass onto firefighters if the 911 caller is not able or unwilling to disclose information.

If firefighters aren’t discussing their emotions with each other or don’t feel comfortable discussing at all, they are left to their own devices.

Out of the the mental health resources that they’re provided with, firefighters prefer to talk to their co-workers, if they have a close relationship. Even if dispatchers provide accurate information about a run, firefighters must be able to adapt to a situation, because at any moment the incident can change.

*A run that is going to be considered traumatic to a firefighter, will be traumatic, regardless of having accurate information.

How migh firefighters’ to repeate

Problem Statement

Firefighters have repeated exposure to trauma that increases their risk of PTSD, depression, anxiety, and suicide. While fire departments do offer mental health services such as critical stress incident management(CISM) and anonymous counseling, firefighters still face stigma-related and structural barriers when deciding to seek help. Compared to the general population, 46.8% of firefighters had suicidal ideation, 19.2% developed a plan, 15.5% attempted suicide at least once, and 16.4% have done non-suicidal self-harm. Considering these alarming rates, firefighters’ battling mental health is an understudied topic. Even though there have been initiatives taken to address this problem, there is little to no reported data on whether these solutions have had any effect on firefighters’ mental health. It is important for firefighters to deal with the trauma before it has the chance to manifest into mental and behavioral issues.

ht we decrease s’ stress related ed exposure to trauma? Things to keep in mind in the design process: • Firefighters prefer a tailored service vs. a general suicide hotline. (Henderson, Van Hasselt) • Firefighters rather talk to coworkers, because of relatability. • 77% of firefighters believed if they had a mental health app that it should be separate from their employer to ensure better confidentiality. (Deady, Peters)

Competitive Analysis PTSD Coach PTSD Coach was created to help those, particularly veterns, with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It can be downloaded from Apple App Store, Google Play, or used through a browser online.

Est.: • 2011

Downloads/Users: • Less than 5,000 downloads

Features: • • • • • • • • •

Symptom tracker Tools to help manage symptoms 20+ tools: breathing, sleep, inspiring quotes, etc. PTSD assessment, with tracker, monthly reminder External sources to learn more about PTSD, get professional help Crisis resources Ability to organize/personalize favorite tools Safety suicide plan Send feedback

Cost: • Free

HealthUnlocked HealthUnlocked, based in the UK, is a mobile and desktop platform that allows users to connect to different communities dedicated to specific health issues.

Est.: • 2010

Downloads/Users: • 1.4 million members

Features: • 500 online communities (discussion board groups) • 250 health conditions discussed • Popular communities monitored by mental health specialist • Private message with all members/groups • External resources to find help

Cost: • Free

Firestrong Firestrong.org is a website, ran by United Phoenix Firefighter Charities, whose goal is to connect firefighters with mental health resources among other tools. Once a fire department registers, the website creates their own dedicated page that has specailized information about the resources currently available within that department only.

Est.:

• 2010

Downloads/Users: • 350 peer support members and partnered with 60+ fire departments across the country

Features:

Cost:

• Peer support • Find a chaplain • PTSD, addictions, anxiety/distress, depression assessments • Mental health educational resources • Financial education

• Indivudal fire departments pay $1,500 a year

Sitemap

MoSCoW for Features

Persona

Journey Map

Wireframes Home Page

To view full set of wireframes, click here.

One on One

Group Support

PTSD Assessment

User Testing Plans & Scripts Plan: Test 5 firefighters using the Maze plugin with Figma. To ensure they understand what to expect, I will call them and stay on the phone with them through the whole process. I plan to record the phone conversation via Otter.ai while Maze collects data such as heat mapping, time spent on pages, etc.

Script: Thank you for taking time of your day to help me out. I’m testing the initial design of this app whose goal is to allow firefighters to discuss their experiences on the job while having the ability to remain private, in a group setting such as discussion boards, or one on one with a peer support buddy. So what you’re about to see are mostly outlines of what the app would look like without any visual designs. Once I get feedback from the testing, I will implement color and visuals and follow up with you! I also want to let you know that this process will be recorded.Is that okay? I’m going to ask you to complete three different tasks. As you are completing each task, please voice out loud your thoughts. I will have some questions to ask you in between a few of the tasks. Feel free to ask questions after the three tasks are done.

Tasks: 1. Please connect with a peer support buddy. After sending your first chat, answer the pop up question. 2. Click on the latest d-iscussion board and leave a comment. 3. Take the PTSD assessment (you don’t have to read the questions, just click through) and when you’re done, set a reminder to turn on reassessment notifications. Then go to your settings and turn that same notification off. After they finished each task, I asked three follow up questions: 1. What are your impressions? 2. What do you like the most? 3. What do you like the least?

Insights & Feedback For round one testing, the plan was to test with at least five firefighters. Unfortunately, I was only able to test and get feedback from four firefighters within this time frame.

Rose A highlight, positive, success • "This would help newer firefighters who haven't built a relationship with their fires station partners yet" • "Easy to use" • "Doesn't get simpler than this" • "Once you understand the process, it's very user friendly" • "I'm not a big tech guy so if I understand how to use it then other people will."

Thorn A challenge or difficulty faced • Users stayed on the home page for 52.1s, which is too long • To connect with a peer support member, 75% of users clicked on group support • The mood slider on the home page is pointless if the user can’t keep track of how they felt each shift • Users kept clicking on group support instead of one on one

Bud

New ideas, areas of opprotunity • Possbility of adding a mood tracker • Possbility of adding a PTSD assessment score tracker • Adding a onboarding tutorial so users understand everything they can do on the app

Round Two Testing Plan: Same as round one.

Script: Thank you for taking time of your day to help me out. I’m testing the design of this app whose goal is to allow firefighters to discuss their experiences on the job while having the ability to remain private, in a group setting such as discussion boards, or one on one with a peer support buddy. I also want to let you know that this process will be recorded. Is that okay? I’m going to ask you to complete two different tasks. As you are completing each task, please voice out loud your thoughts. I will have some questions to ask you in between a few of the tasks. Try your best to complete the task, if you get stuck, let me know.

Tasks: 1. Create a private account, looking for support. 2. Connect with Greg, a peer member, and send him a chat. 3. Do you have any suggestions, feedback, or comments about the experience? After they finished each task, I asked three follow up questions: 1. What are your impressions? 2. What do you like the most? 3. What do you like the least?

Insights & Feedback For round two testing, the plan was to test with at least five firefighters. Unfortunately, I was only able to test and get feedback from one firefighter within this time frame.

Rose A highlight, positive, success • “Log in is pretty simple. Not a lot of questions. “ • “Nothing too flashy.”

Thorn A challenge or difficulty faced • User didn’t understand the point of the slider. It seemed pointless.

Bud New ideas, areas of opprotunity • Option to have both ‘looking for support and give support.” • If a user is having a stressful shift, the app should let others know. ie. “Stressed status bar”

BRANDING 41

Moodboard My approach was to think about key words and phrase that I wanted to represent my brand and users. From there I pulled images that came to mind. The colors were selected by Adobe Colors. Since both moodboards delivered such strong colors, I pulled inspiration from both to decide my final color scheme.

Community, Dedication, Pride

Emotional Freedom, Safe Space, Confidential

Final Color Scheme

Style Guide

*Peer chat, profile, ptsd, resoruces, edit, settings, back icons downloaded from flaticon.com

UI Designs Onboarding/Registration

Onboarding illustrations credit: Freepik.com Log in and home screen background image credit: Gettyimages.com

Home Page To view full set of ui designs, click here.

My Profile

Group Support

Web-Based Prototype To view the prototype click here or the image below.

Future Recommendations The most logical next steps: • Go back and do more usability testing with firefighters, preferably in person. • Add a tracker for users to track their moods after shifts. • Add a tracker for users to track their PTSD Assessments: date they took it and the score. • Allow users to chat to multiple people at once. • Allow users to be able to give support as well as receive, specifically through being able to connect with a peer.

DEVELOPMENT PLANNING 51

Functional Requirements User Log In/ Sign Up - Users will be able to login through their username and a pin. They also have the option to log in using facial recognition, which they can turn on or off at any point through their settings. Database and Storage - To collect and store user’s information as well as their individual posts and comments which will make up the discussion boards. As well as collecting their moods, before and after, talking to a peer support member, for research purposes to see if the app is solving the problem. Search - Users will have the ability to search keywords or phrases to quickly find posts. AI Technologies - AI will be used to calculate most visited discussion boards to create new “popular topics” and update the user on “trending posts” on their home page. AI will also help calculate a user’s PTSD Assessment score, as well as storing that information in the database for research purposes.

Development Practices HTML, CSS, Javascript, and Bootstrap will be used for front end development to help build the structure, the design, and interactions for this mobile first application. For the back end development, MySQL will be used to build the database that will hold all the information for each user and each post in combination of PHP for the standardized scripting language.

Database Design Relationships for Thesis

Thursday, Aprilthe 29, 2021 To view content and data requirements, click here. Job Titles ID Firefighter Firefighter and Paramedic Volunteer Firefighter Driver Engineer Lieutenant Captain Battalion Chief Assistant Chief Fire Chief Off-Duty Retired User ID First Name Pin Years on Job Job Title Avatar Martial Status Religion Biography Username Posts Peer Support Connection

Martial Status ID Single Married Divorce Widowed Domestic Partnership Seperated Remarried

Post ID Post Date/Timestamp Post Title

Religion ID Christian Catholic Mormon Jewish Muslim Buddhist Hindu Sihk Tao Athetist Agnostic Not Religious Spiritual Other

Peer Support Connection ID Peer Support Member Name Date of Connection

Information Architecture For a closer look, click here. ID

Page Heirarchy

Log In/ Sign Up Log In with Username/Pin Log In with Face ID Sign Up Registration/Onboarding Public Profile Looking for support Job title, years on the job Create username and pin Upload avatar Giving support First name, job title, years on the job, religion, martial status Upload avatar, short bio Create username and pin

Private Profile Looking for support Job title, years on the job Create username and pin

Upload avatar Giving support Job title, years on the job, religion, martial status Upload avatar, short bio Create username and pin 2

Home Trending Posts Your Activity Group Support Peer Chat My Profile

Group Support Popular Topics All Discussion Boards Search Post

Peer Chat Find a peer Peer Profile Connect Chat Delete Messages Remove Connection Report

My Profile Resources Facts about PTSD Mental Health Providers In Person Group Support PTSD Assessment Email Score Set Reminder Settings Notifications Chat messages Comments on post Replies to comment Trending posts PTSD reassessment reminder Security Username Email Pin Face ID Private/Public profile Manage Peers Remove Report Edit Profile Change profile picture Username Job Title Years on Job Bio (Public Accounts Only) Religion (Public Accounts Only) Martial Status (Public Accounts Only) Name (Public Accounts Only)

ESSAYS 57

COVID-19 Response During my initial research stages, I wanted to observe how firefighters prepared for their runs. I wanted to capture the process from receiving information about a run to returning back to the station. Unfortunately, due to Covid-19, the Dallas Fire Department paused ride alongs. Other than not being able to observe the firefighters, my project wasn’t affected. After completing remote testing, I do think testing in person would have been more effective. Also having the ability to test a lot of firefighters at the station at once would have been helpful for me to get more feedback. However, it’s important to note that while civilians were able to quarantine during a pandemic, firefighters didn’t have that same opportunity. So having a platform like, Firefighter Support, would have been a great resource to have during the pandemic, because their stress levels were probably at a higher level than usual.

Ethics & Social Impact With the impact that social media has on the world, it’s important to ensure users that the platform they are using is operating in an ethical way. Since my population are firefighters, who are looking for mental support, it’s important to uphold what I promised them: a safe and confidential space. However, it’s necessary that data is gathered to confirm that my platform is actually solving the problem of decreasing firefighters’ stress. My app would collect data around, how often users are logging in and being active, but most importantly the mood slider that pops up throughout the app at different points. So keeping track of how many shifts are stressful for users and how often, storing their PTSD assessment scores, and lastly seeing if they are less stressed after chatting with a peer. 58

While doing secondary research, I was able to conclude that while there were some initiatives taken to solve this problem, there isn’t any data around whether it was helping. I understand that it is a sensitive topic, especially with firefighters facing stigmas around admitting mental health, but I believe there has to be a way to collect information to see if people are even close to solving this problem. This is such an underserved population and topic, so collecting data is imperative if we plan to decrease firefighters’ stress in hopes of narrow their chances of PTSD, depression, and possible suicide attempts. If there is no data to prove my hypothesis, then we will never be closer to finding a solution. Additionally, considering that this is a social platform, where users can freely say what they want, there are chances of online bullying and doxxing. I would hope as the platform got bigger, we would initiate AI that would help prevent that from happening. For example, taking down posts that are reported or using keywords. It might be helpful to give users a guideline, during the onboarding process, of what not to say in posts to keep the app a safe space for everyone. Though it might be hard to know, if for example, Sally exposes information about Tom about his public life online or exposes information about his online life, publicly. We would have to heavily rely and trust that our users will respect the platform and its mission.

Graduate Reflection Upon the start of this program, though eager, I felt very hesitant. I had a basic understanding of user experience to the point where I knew I wanted it to be my next career step. However, I honestly didn’t fully understand what I was exactly signing up for until the first day of class when Neil further explained. I knew user experience was a process of solving to meet users needs, I knew coding would be involved, but I wasn’t prepared whatsoever about design. I used to tell people my worst skill would be graphic design and here I am having to design a complete project. Not only that, there would be constant presentations! I knew I wanted to be challenged, but not this challenged, especially in areas I knew where I already performed so poorly in. I thought about just giving up, and accepting that this career field just wasn’t for me. But one cold fall night, after class, while waiting for the bus, I decided no matter how challenging, I was going to make a commitment and see this program through. Now looking back, I can say that I have seen a lot of growth, and not just in the design area! My presentation skills I would say have greatly improved. I learned how important it is to just not speak to people but to tell a story to captivate their minds to keep them interested. I”ve also learned that if I’m not feeling confident about a task, to just ask for help instead of assuming. I’m lucky to have been in a cohort of friendly, helpful people who come from diverse backgrounds. Ending this program, though I feel well rounded in many of the different areas of UX, I feel the most confident going into user research. I know as long as I keep an open mind and receptive to challenges, I will continue to learn and grow more into the endless possibilities that the field of user experience has to offer.

CANDIDATE DETAILS 63

Candidate Bio Hailing all the way from Dallas, Texas, Phylandra found herself in Philadelphia! With the intentions of changing the world through photojournalism, she went to Temple University, which is where she would get her BA in Journalism, focus in multimedia. Through her multimedia journalism experience, she realized she wasn’t able to help people as hands on as she initially thought. So she took a step back and went into urban education. Though quite satisfying, she missed the creative and technical aspect of problem solving. Now graduating with her MS in User Experience and Interaction Design, she is excited to showcase peoples stories to bring light to their frustrations in order to design a solution that will improve their daily life. More than just a problem solver, she cares passionately about helping others meet their goals. Her spare time is filled with family, cats, film, and pottery!

Resume PHYLANDRA MCFADDIN User Experience Designer EDUCATION

phylandra.anne@gmail.com phylandra.com 214.629.1653

UX PROJECTS

Thomas Jefferson University | Philadelphia, PA MS in User Experience, Interaction Design Aug. 2019 - present Relevant Coursework ● Essentials of Interaction Design Fall 2019 ● Research and Design Process Methods Fall 2019 ● Digital Experience Design Spring 2020 ● Information Architecture Spring 2020

Thesis Project: Mental Health among Firefighters While doing research on communication between 911 dispatchers and firefighters, I uncovered a bigger problem at hand which led me to: how might we decrease firefighter’s stress related to repeated exposure to trauma? Currently designing an app with the goal of allowing firefighters to connect to an online community through discussion boards and a peer buddy support system to help uphold their mental toughness (est. completion May 2021).

Temple University | Philadelphia, PA BA in Journalism, focus in multimedia Aug. 2013 – Dec. 2016

MANNA New IA Recommendation To help improve this nonproﬁt’s site structure, my team conducted a heuristic review as well as user interviews. We then created personas and mapped out their journey to better understand their needs and frustrations. Once we better understood the users, we did a content audit to ﬁgure out what content was needed in order for the site to be successful. We came up with a new navigation through user testing, thus creating wireframes to help present our solution.

EXPERIENCE

Freelance Content Creator Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA | Jan. 2018 – May 2019 ● Created innovative approaches to maximize the potential of visual storytelling. ● Ensured that all content is on brand in terms of style and quality. ● Punctual delivery of content within hours of the event. Customer Service & Technology Facilitator (AmeriCorps) YouthBuild Philadelphia Charter School Philadelphia, PA | Aug. 2017 – Aug. 2018 ● Coached a class of at least 20 students (ages 18-21) through customer service training and building foundational skills for digital literacy. ● Drafted newsletters, presentations, and public service announcements to promote programs. ● Supervised students while completing weekly community service projects with our community partners.

H(2) + 0: Water Tracker A habit forming app where users can input their water intake and keep track of their daily, weekly, and monthly water intake. The app includes a friend circle that allows for users to view their friend’s proﬁle to see how much water they are drinking and if they are meeting their goals. Users and their friends will be motivated to drink more water through different types of notiﬁcations.

SKILLS

HTML & CSS User Research Methods Journey Mapping Prototyping Wireframing Adobe Creative Suite Figma, XD, Sketch

Select Works To view select works, click on title.

Website Redesign: MANNA PA

My team and I evaluated and described the IA of this non-profit’s existing products and services

by conducting a heuristic review then interviewing their users. Once understanding our personas, we did a content audit. Afterwards we were able to recommend new IA and created wireframes and a prototype.

H(2) + 0: Water Tracker A habit forming app where users can input their water intake and keep track of their daily, weekly, and monthly water intake. The app includes a friend circle that allows for users to view their friend’s profile to see how much water they are drinking and if they are meeting their goals. Users and their friends will be motivated to drink more water through different types of notifications.

Kanbar Cafeteria’s Food Guide

Through research, my team uncovered there was a concern about a lack of nutritional, dietary, and allergy information available at Kanbar cafeterias at Jefferson Univ. East Falls. I developed a prototype of a kiosk that would provide users with the information they need to feel confident throughout the ordering process.

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