Reducing uncertainty across mental healthcare discovery, appointment scheduling, payment and ongoing patient engagement.
00 / Project overview
PsychPlus envisions a future where mental well-being is prioritized as much as physical health. The patient app supports the care journey before and after an appointment, from finding a psychiatrist or therapist to managing medications, reminders and follow-up care.
The redesign focused on the moments where uncertainty was breaking confidence: before sign-up, during provider selection, throughout booking and payment, and after an appointment was confirmed.
My role and ownership
Defined the research plan and synthesized behavioral and attitudinal evidence.
Reframed onboarding so exploration happened before account commitment.
Redesigned provider discovery, scheduling, payment and appointment management.
Established a scalable, accessible mobile design system and handoff approach.
Existing experience
These production screens show how account creation, provider discovery, scheduling, insurance and payment were connected in the original experience. The audit focuses only on the moments that added the most uncertainty.
The journey begins with authentication, before patients can understand the available care or evaluate provider fit.
A multi-step registration flow requests identity and password details before patients experience meaningful product value.
The same account step changes its validation feedback in place, adding another state patients must interpret before moving forward.
The second step extends the commitment with demographic information while the care-discovery goal remains out of reach.
Legal consent completes the account flow before patients have browsed providers or understood the service.
Scheduling cards, upcoming appointments, care-team content and navigation compete within the same visual hierarchy.
A large modal interrupts the home context and asks patients to choose a visit mode before showing provider or availability context.
Insurance versus self-pay is requested before patients understand provider fit, expected cost or coverage status.
Provider cards prioritize name, location and time slots, but provide limited evidence for comparing suitability and trust.
The empty state reports that no data was found but offers no recovery action, alternate date, provider or visit type.
Selection is visible, but acceptance, verification and patient responsibility are not explained as separate states.
Payment type, card details and billing information appear in one long form without a clear summary of total, coverage or estimated due.
Provider details, policies, consent and the final booking action are compressed into a dense card instead of a clear care-management handoff.
Patients repeatedly had to commit, choose or pay before receiving enough context to feel confident. That pattern connected the entry, discovery, scheduling and post-booking problems.
Account creation appeared before patients could discover value.
Provider information did not support confident comparison.
Broken sequence and unclear next steps interrupted booking.
Patients could not quickly distinguish total, coverage and responsibility.
Weak reminders and status visibility reduced continuity.
Inconsistent components and states lowered perceived quality.
01 / The challenge
The real problem was uncertainty.
Retention and appointment conversion were falling because the experience asked for commitment before it created clarity or trust.
Broken flows prevented patients from completing core tasks with confidence.
Outdated hierarchy and inconsistent patterns made the product feel unreliable.
The app offered limited reasons to return between appointments.
Accessibility gaps and missing states increased friction at sensitive moments.
Help patients confidently explore care, choose an appropriate provider and complete an appointment booking with minimal effort, while building enough trust to keep them engaged after the visit?
Reduce premature sign-up friction.
Improve provider relevance and confidence.
Recover appointment conversion.
Reduce checkout confusion.
Increase retention and care preparedness.
02 / Research and discovery
We combined product evidence, market context, patient interviews, surveys, an experience audit and prototype testing to understand both the reasons behind abandonment and the scale of recurring issues.
Expectations, emotional barriers and decision-making.
Frequency and relative priority of reported issues.
Usability, consistency and accessibility defects.
Abandonment across sign-up, discovery, booking and payment.
Validation of revised concepts and remaining friction.
What we wanted to learn
What prevents patients from exploring and booking care in the existing app?
What information helps a patient decide whether a provider is right for them?
Where does scheduling create hesitation, confusion or rework?
Which reminders, statuses and care-management features would make the app worth returning to?
03 / Patient interviews
The conversations focused on how patients searched for care, evaluated providers, interpreted payment information and prepared for upcoming visits.
“Why should I create an account before I can even see what is available?”
“I need more than a name and specialty. I want to understand their experience and approach.”
“I was not sure whether I had selected the appointment or whether there was another step.”
“I cannot tell what I owe, what insurance covers or what happens next.”
“I should not have to open different pages to confirm when my appointment is.”
“If the interface feels inconsistent, I worry the process may also be unreliable.”
04 / Survey signals
The survey reinforced the interview themes: start earlier than the calendar. Exploration, provider confidence and eligibility determine whether a patient ever reaches scheduling.
Design response: guest exploration and progressive account creation.
Design response: prominent filters with visible, persistent selections.
Design response: visible progress and one primary decision per screen.
Design response: comparable profiles, care approach and feedback.
Design response: group total, coverage, responsibility and consent.
Design response: persistent upcoming-visit cards and preferences.
05 / Synthesis
Calm visuals mattered, but predictable behavior, evidence, status and recovery mattered more.
Patients needed to explore services before sharing personal information.
Specialty alone was not enough to support confident choice.
One unclear step could break the entire booking funnel.
Total, coverage and responsibility needed a plain-language hierarchy.
Every action needed clear feedback and an obvious next step.
Guest mode, value-led onboarding and progressive sign-up.
Lightweight needs questions and a personalized home.
Filters, richer cards, profiles, ratings and care approach.
Progressive steps, editable summaries and confirmations.
Structured cost hierarchy and explicit insurance states.
Prominent appointments, reminders, medication and education access.
06 / Behavioral personas
Maya needed freedom to explore. Daniel needed speed and continuity. The final structure separated guest discovery from authenticated care management while keeping both paths consistent.
The cautious first-time seeker
“I am ready to look for help, but I do not want to share everything before I know this service feels right for me.”
29, marketing coordinator, new to therapy, prefers virtual care.
Researches privately and delays commitment until she trusts the service.
Explore before sign-up, understand provider approach, see cost and availability.
Forced registration, clinical jargon, shallow profiles and unclear insurance.
Find a provider who feels relevant and trustworthy, then book without restarting or decoding the process.