.jpg)
Trimester Tracker is a personal venture that is close to my heart. In June 2021, I pitched to a panel of experienced entrepreneurs and investors at Creative HQ (in Wellington, New Zealand) and was delighted to be awarded a coveted place in their six-month incubator programme.
This position gave me unlimited access to expert coaching and in-depth workshops to further develop my concept: a user-centric, workflow management tool to help midwives manage their caseload and document medical findings, while also alerting them to any potential patient health concerns.
Client: Trimester Tracker
Duration: 18 months
Role: Lead Product Designer + Founder
Platform: Android + iOS based app
Currently midwives are either still using traditional paper documentation or one of the limited digital applications available. However, based on user research, even with the current digital solutions, midwives are still spending on average between 10-15 hours a week on administrative tasks. The current apps are overwhelmingly complex and clunky, with poor User Experience.
In-depth user research found that self-employed community midwives, who work independently of hospitals, often feel unsupported and marginalised in today’s healthcare system. These midwives are massively overworked and due to time constraints often struggle to keep accurate and contemporaneous records. Failure to do so leads to miscommunication and misguided care, by the midwife themself, and/or other healthcare professionals.
All communications, medical assessments, and treatment of care (for the patient and their newborn) need to be thoroughly documented. These records need to be continuously updated and made available to the patient themselves, and/or any other midwives and healthcare professionals involved in their care.
.jpg)
Trimester Tracker has the potential to successfully bring to the market an intuitive digital app that efficiently reduces the administrative workload for midwives, while also creating patient safety alerts for potential health concerns and complications.
With the help of AI and a carefully curated User Experience, inefficient administration can be automated, turning everyday mundane tasks into a seamless digital experience – shifting the focus of midwives away from 'paperwork' and back to the patients themselves. This will not only help improve job satisfaction but also the work/life balance of our midwives. By addressing this worldwide issue, midwifery can become more appealing to new graduates and recruits – in turn helping address the consistent shortage of health carers.
The first few months at Creative HQ were spent iterating and testing my concept by creating user journeys, storyboards, MVP development, and user testing, etc. Subsequently, the focus then progressed to pitching to potential investors, creating global market strategies, financial modelling, and sales plans etc.
Collaborating with midwifery experts, I pinpointed crucial limitations in existing digital solutions and key pain points within current systems. This insight drove the development of distinctive features for Trimester Tracker, including:
.png)
I truly believe Trimester Tracker can successfully bring to the market an intuitive digital app that efficiently reduces the administrative workload for midwives by at least 30%. By harnessing modern technology, there is the potential to create a solution that benefits the entire healthcare ecosystem.
While New Zealand's total addressable market may be limited, broadening the scope to encompass countries with comparable midwifery systems holds the potential for exponential growth. This product expansion is what I am currently working towards.
