Olivia Jurkovic

Mia

WHAT IT DOESTargeted at early school aged children Mia’s play to learn strategy aims to introduce aspects of blood glucose management to match the expected level of type 1 diabetes knowledge.HOW IT WORKSThe physical accessory communicates blood glucose readings through animated facial expressions, audio and haptic feedback. The digital counterpart educates patients and parents about various aspects of diabetes management.INSPIRATIONI decided that I wanted to develop a project that addresses the challenge of increasing health literacy through patient-centered design principles.I chose to focus on diabetes as a case study because diabetes self-management poses a range of complex challenges, and effective self-management has tremendous benefits for long-term health outcomes.DESIGN PROCESSThe design process was anchored in research, The physical prototype was created through a silicone mould making and dyeing process and the digital prototype was made in Figma.HOW IT IS DIFFERENTMost current blood glucose monitors generate vast amounts of data which can be difficult to interpret. Mia aims to present blood glucose readings in accordance to the patients developmental stage and expected diabetes management priorities. Furthermore, the digital platform aims to educate both care provider and patient diabetes management. It works as an extension to Apple Health. FUTURE PLANSA more robust prototype could be created that mirrors the actual interaction mechanism. The digital platform for kids could also be more fully realized, right now it it only an idea.

“Blood glucose monitoring accessory for pediatric diabetes”