Summary
In his talk, Schwartz from GE Healthcare delves into the importance of empathy in healthcare design, emphasizing the need for healthcare professionals to reconnect with personal experiences and understand the diverse healthcare journeys across various cultures globally. Schwartz shares stories from his tenure at GE Healthcare, illustrating how the team used personal narratives to guide the company’s mission and enhance patient care. By fostering a culture of empathy and collaboration, they aimed to intertwine emotional benefits with technological advancements. Schwartz discusses the challenge of altering perceptions about design in a business environment that often views it as merely decorative, advocating instead for a model where design serves to connect deeply with user needs. The session shares various methodologies employed by Schwartz and his team to implement these changes, such as engaging workshops that encourage reflective practice about healthcare environments and the stories of patients, caregivers, and healthcare providers. Through these efforts, they strive to transform GE Healthcare's corporate culture to be more empathetic, understanding, and responsive to the needs of diverse patient populations.
Key Insights
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Empathy is crucial in healthcare design, connecting personal experiences to patient care.
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Understanding diverse cultural contexts is essential when developing healthcare solutions.
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Design should integrate emotional benefits with functional features in healthcare products.
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Engaging storytelling can serve as a powerful tool to inspire healthcare professionals and stakeholders.
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The transformation of design culture within large organizations like GE Healthcare requires persistent effort and relationship building.
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Using real patient data and experiences helps to create compelling narratives for design.
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Establishing an integrated approach makes design a strategic partner in healthcare delivery.
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Workshops that encourage reflection on personal healthcare journeys foster empathy in design teams.
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Design leaders must communicate in the language of business to gain trust and credibility.
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Creating immersive experiences that place stakeholders in patient shoes can lead to innovative solutions.
Notable Quotes
"Close your eyes and think about a time when you felt supported in a healthcare experience."
"When I found myself at GE Healthcare, I realized that the way to reach this gigantic company was to touch them and remind them of their own why."
"Healthcare is often messy, often unimpathic."
"The reality is that that stuff isn't self-aware. You're responsible for that."
"You can see heads go down when we run workshops and remind them it's not just about technology stack and pricing."
"The fundamental is that those things don’t work unless you touch people where they are."
"We realized we had to make our journey map not a document that goes in a drawer, but something we live with and adapt continuously."
"We decided that the bloody noses were really badges of honor."
"Making it about everybody else has been a big part of our legacy."
"We found that using stories helps in altering perceptions about what design can achieve."
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