Context

Groundswell began as a graduate-level project and evolved into a grant-funded initiative with UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital located in Pittsburgh, PA.

I focused on shaping the overall Groundswell experience, such as how staff interact with the restorative pod. I also contributed to content design across system components.

ROLE
–
Experience Designer
Content Designer
Project Coordinator
TEAM
–
Designers
Fabricators & Engineers
Hospital Staff
Hospital Administration
Subject Matter Experts
Donators
DURATION
–
2025-2026
TOOLS
–
Adobe Creative Cloud

Figma

Problem Space

Oncology staff experience sustained emotional strain

While support resources exist, they are scattered and hard to use on shift, leaving staff without space to process grief.

We asked:

How might we design supportive spaces where healthcare workers can openly and safely address burnout, compassion fatigue, the emotional toll of patient deaths, and the burden of administrative tasks overshadowing patient care?

Solution

Groundswell provides short, structured emotional recovery for healthcare staff

Designing alongside both staff and hospital administration made Groundswell successful and easy to integrate into the hospital system.

The Groundswell Pod, nested within a nook at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital, acts as a private space for short breaks during shifts.

The experience begins with a redesigned patient death notification, inviting staff to the pod.

Community messaging wall allows for collective reflection and emotional acknowledgment.

Inside the pod, ambient backlighting pairs with mindful content to guide staff through the available resources: finger labyrinths, a QR-linked mindfulness library, and emotion reflection cards with expert-backed mindfulness exercises.

Research & Concept Pitch

Interviews, shadowing, and workshops revealed staff carry cumulative emotional weight without time or space to process

Our team identified four key opportunities, informing our concept pitch. We developed an integrated system of four touchpoints, resulting in Groundswell.

Redesigned death notification system changing cold clinical emails into kind, supportive messages for staff

Private, quiet space for staff to process grief and relax as standard break rooms do not help with stress

Digital flower garden interface that turns private staff emotions into anonymous visual art

Training guidebook that teaches leaders how to use everyday, compassionate language to support their team

Key Iterations

Groundswell required continuous negotiation between design intent, clinical reality, and institutional constraints

We had to navigate four main constraints:

  1. Strict hospital administration requirements

  2. Tight project deadlines and budgets

  3. Balancing emotional safety with feasibility

  4. Adapting language to staff feedback

1. Strict hospital administration requirements

Hospital administration required lockable doors, a strict 10-minute limit, and a plan to ensure staff respected the space. Instead of letting these rules limit us, we turned them into design opportunities.

With a co-designer, I integrated intuitive time-tracking cues, interactive mindfulness content, and clear signage into the pod experience.

2. Tight project deadlines and budgets

Deadlines and limited budgets forced us to pivot away from complex features, including the training guidebook and digital flower garden.

Printed Reflection Cards replaced the guidebook to give staff instant tools without training.

A physical Community Art Wall served as a low-risk prototype to test live interaction.

3. Balancing emotional safety with feasibility

We ran continuous testing loops with staff, administration, and subject-matter experts to ensure our designs were both hospital-compliant and emotionally safe.

Using feedback from our stakeholders, we adjusted the tone and language to ensure the content felt accessible and operationally feasible.

4. Adapting language to staff feedback

We originally focused the project’s tone entirely on acknowledging grief. However, staff noted that oncology work also brings hope, joy, and resilience. Realizing our view was too narrow, we collaborated with clinicians to shift the tone to restoration, matching their actual daily experiences.

Staff feedback shifted our slogan from "grieve, together" to "making space to restore, together."

Outcome

Groundswell launched as a 12-month quality improvement study

Partnering with UPMC, we are collecting data through pod usage, message wall interactions, surveys, and interviews. The study is scheduled to complete July 2026.

Early signals and trends

While our study is underway, early data shows a positive correlation between patient loss and pod usage. The most common words left on the community art wall are grateful, hopeful, and joyful.

What we are measuring

  • Patient Losses: Monthly death notification emails sent

  • Pod Traffic: Anonymous visit numbers and durations via a sensor

  • Wall Interaction: Total count and emotional tone of tags

  • Staff Feedback: Surveys before, during, and after rollout; interviews