Background
Prior to the introduction of the Alignment Provider Search Portal, members and agents faced challenges in finding the right providers that matched their healthcare plan and medical group.
The process was often manual, looking through printed pdf files and time-consuming, requiring multiple steps to confirm provider participation in specific plans, medical groups, and specialties. This lack of a streamlined search function led to inefficiencies and delays in securing care.
To solve these issues, Alignment Healthcare developed the Provider Search Portal, a comprehensive, user-friendly digital tool that allows members and agents to easily locate providers based on multiple criteria, improving care accessibility and decision-making.
Solution: Alignment Provider Search Portal
The Alignment Provider Search Portal was designed to offer an intuitive and efficient search experience, enabling users to quickly find healthcare providers, facilities and specialty services based on their individual needs.
Key Features:
- Search by Specialty and Distance: Users can filter providers based on medical specialty and proximity to their location.
- Plan and Medical Group Matching: Ensures that only providers who accept the user's health plan and belong to the correct medical group are displayed.
- Medical Group Affiliation Visibility: Displays which providers are associated with specific medical groups, improving transparency and network understanding.
- Detailed Provider Profiles: Each provider’s detail page includes provider information, practice location(s), accepted plans, and medical group affiliations.
- Comprehensive Facility Search: Users can search not only for doctors but also for facilities, dentists, eye doctors, and specialists within their network.
My UI/UX Leadership Contribution
As a UI/UX leader, I played a critical role in designing and refining the Alignment Provider Search Portal to ensure an intuitive and seamless provider discovery experience. My contributions included:
- Leading user research and testing to identify pain points in the provider search experience and optimize usability.
- Defining UX best practices to create a clean, structured, and easy-to-navigate search interface.
- Collaborating with product managers, engineers, and stakeholders to align the portal’s functionality with business and user needs.
- Improving the search filtering system to enhance provider findability based on specialty, distance, medical group, and plan compatibility.
- Optimizing the provider profile structure to ensure users can easily access key information, including provider details, locations, and plan participation.
- Enhancing accessibility standards (WCAG compliance) to ensure an inclusive experience for all users, including seniors and individuals with disabilities.
- Guiding iteration cycles and usability enhancements based on analytics and user feedback.
Key Takeaways
- Improved Efficiency: The portal significantly reduces the time required for members and agents to find in-network providers.
- Enhanced User Experience: A well-structured and intuitive interface simplifies provider search, reducing frustration and improving satisfaction.
- Data Transparency & Accuracy: Users can trust that displayed providers align with their health plan and medical group, minimizing confusion.
- Broader Access to Care: The inclusion of specialists, dentists, and facilities expands care options beyond primary care providers.
- Operational Benefits: Reduced call center inquiries highlight the effectiveness of self-service provider search capabilities.
Lessons Learned
- User Research is Essential: Early and ongoing user research ensures that the search experience meets real-world needs.
- Comprehensive Filtering Enhances Findability: Allowing users to filter by specialty, distance, plan, and medical group improves search relevance.
- Accessibility Matters: Implementing WCAG standards is crucial for an inclusive experience, particularly for seniors and individuals with disabilities.
- Stakeholder Collaboration Drives Success: Cross-functional teamwork between UX, engineering, and product management ensures alignment with business goals.
- Iterative Improvements Are Key: Analytics and user feedback should continuously inform refinements to optimize usability and functionality.