problem
Medication nonadherence is when a patient does not follow the instructions: takes medication at incorrect times, skips doses, or takes more than prescribed.
In the U.S. alone, over 117 million people live with long-term health conditions, yet nearly 50% forget to take their medications, and 1 in 5 prescriptions are never filled.
secondary research & competitor analysis
To explore how a digital solution could help, I examined how healthcare professionals are trained to support adherence and I discovered that they use approaches like simplified medication lists, reduced frequency of refills, pill organizers, electronic reminders and others methods (source).
I also analyzed three existing largest apps (Medisafe, MyTherapy, and EveryDose) to understand how they address this problem, where they fall short, and what opportunities exist to design an intuitive experience.
Although each of these apps brings valuable tools to empowering users in their daily health routines, none of them reliably prevent user error, such as adding same medication, increasing dosage, or deleting history without confirmation.
This analysis highlighted an opportunity to design a solution that not only supports adherence but also prioritizes safety and clarity.
survey
To better understand the real-life challenges people face, I conducted a survey with 49 respondents
The survey included a filter question to ensure responses came from people who take medications regularly, ranging from multiple times a day to once a week.
It was shared across LinkedIn, chronic condition support groups on Facebook, and a Slack channel for Springboard UX design students.
Key findings
1
Forgetfulness is the #1 reason for non-adherence, cited by over 75% of respondents.
2
One-third of users don’t organize their medications at all, while only 16.6% rely on med reminder apps, which highlights a gap between existing tools and actual user habits.
3
66.6% of people take medications to treat symptoms or deficiencies and 36.6% manage chronic or long-term conditions, which shows the importance of daily consistency.
interviews
To dig deeper into the survey results, I interviewed 5 people who had indicated they sometimes don’t take their medications as prescribed
I've learned that
1
Forgetfulness is situational, not just mental.
4 out of 5 said they forget to take their meds, especially if they don’t see them, don’t have water nearby, or are simply too tired.
2
Refills are a common pain point.
3 out of 5 admitted they forget to restock meds - either they didn’t notice they were running low or the process felt like too much effort.
3
Getting info about medications is frustrating.
Most people either rely on Google and a few said they’d only get proper info if they asked a direct question.
One quote really stuck with me:
"I may think that I forgot to take the pill and I'll take it again."
This shows how easy it is to accidentally double-dose without a clear record or confirmation, highlighting the importance of not just reminders, but also visibility and reassurance in the medication-taking process.
challenge
How might we help people remember to take and refill their medications on time, while also giving them confidence that they’ve already taken them?
ideation
During ideation, I explored ways to help users set up medications, stay on schedule, and log doses without confusion. The focus was on making the experience clear and reassuring.
The low-fidelity wireframes for the "Add Medication" flow demonstrate how users could add medications quickly through search or scan, then set schedules, reminders, and refills. The goal was to keep setup simple and fast while still covering all key needs.
Add Medication flow
Log Medication flow
The wireframes for the "Log medication" flow show how users can mark doses as taken with confirmation and status indicators.
usability tests
Lo-fi testing with 5 users and hi-fi testing with 3 helped me identify what worked and what caused confusion. Based on these findings, I refined the final designs and made key changes to improve clarity, discoverability, and ease of use.
Final solution
Users can save their medication by searching for a name or scanning the bottle label/barcode
"Scan medication" flow allows users to add a new medication by scanning the label or barcode on a prescription bottle using their phone camera. Once scanned, the app identifies the medication and shows a list of possible matches for quick selection.
It's fast and convenient, reduces manual errors, and improves accessibility, especially for users with complex prescriptions or multiple meds.
Medication scan
"Search medication" flow allows users to search for and add medications by name, selecting from a list of matches, and then customize their schedule and dosage.
It's more flexible for users with unique or custom regimens, supports less common meds that are not easily scannable, and simplifies maintaining and updating the medication database over time.
Medication search
"Set up reminders" flow helps users create a medication schedule and opt into reminders
The app explains how the reminder system works and makes it easy to adjust times or doses based on personal routines.
Reminders are optional and can be turned off, allowing users to control their schedule without interruption. If reminders are enabled, users will receive notifications to take their medications according to the scheduled time.
This design promotes adherence while maintaining a flexible and user-friendly experience.
Schedule and medication reminders
Refill reminders
The refill reminder feature helps users stay on top of their medication refills and allows setting up refill reminders by:
Entering their current stock
Choosing when to be notified (e.g. 5 tablets left)
Selecting a reminder time
Users can toggle the reminder on/off. If turned off, the app encourages activation with a helpful stat about its benefits.
The medication logging feature offers two options to accommodate different user needs
Users can mark each medication individually or multiple medications at once.
"Log medications individually" lets users log each medication one at a time, giving them the flexibility to take, skip, or reschedule a specific dose without affecting others. It ensures more accurate tracking and is helpful when plans change for just one medication.
"Log multiple medications" lets users mark several medications as taken in one go, making it faster and requiring fewer steps than logging each one separately. It’s great for people who take multiple meds at the same time, streamlining their daily routine.
When users add new medication and set up schedule, the system checks the current time against the planned doses
If a scheduled time has already passed, the app prompts to mark that dose as taken before saving.
This small feature saves users from having to mentally track whether they’ve already taken earlier doses that day. In usability testing, participants appreciated the convenience, noting it would help maintain accurate medication logs.
Reflection
Testing early and often made it clear how small design choices, like button placement or wording, can create confusion or clarity. If I did this project again, I’d run quick usability tests with sketch prototypes to validate ideas even sooner.