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OCAD U’s Health Design Studio works with health professionals during COVID-19 crisis

Covid-19 printable project

During the COVID-19 crisis, or any crisis, clarity, speed and accuracy are key to effective communications. This is where OCAD U’s Dr. Kate Sellen and the Health Design Studio step in.

Dr. Sellen, Canada Research Chair in Health Design, OCAD U, and her team, are working with a group of physicians at assessment Centers and ERs in Toronto and Alberta  to create the Covid-19 printable project.

“We were working together on another project when COVID-19 started, faced with hundreds of people coming to the ER, and no appropriate handouts, we decided to start the printables project,” said Dr. Sellen. “We wanted to meet the needs of physicians and patients by collaborating on a solution that addresses access and inclusiveness for a diverse population.”

That is why Dr. Sellen and her team developed the Covid-19 printable project with self-management resources, available in more than 27 languages, which at the moment includes three patient handouts: ‘self-management of COVID-19’, ‘self-isolation’, and ‘why am I not being tested.’ Centers and clinics are now downloading and adapting these all over the world, and new languages are added daily, and more printables are in the works.

The resources are updated daily, based on public health guidelines and can be edited by staff at hospitals and clinics to adapt to their local guidelines and protocols.

Students from the Design for Health Master’s degree program have been integral to the project, as well as medical students from the University of Toronto. It’s truly an interdisciplinary collaboration.

The Health Design Studio at OCAD U, works on bringing an inclusive and interdisciplinary design approach to healthcare design challenges.

Much of the work focuses on design for safety critical and high sensitivity topics, including the dosing, ordering, tapering, and management of opiates, and communication at end of life.