Bridging research, funding, and care

Building a Scalable Digital Ecosystem for Global Hepatitis B Reserach

Team

1 UX Researcher

1 Full-stack UX Designer

Timeline

Feb 2025 - May 2025

(12 weeks)

Methodology

Content audit, tree testing, task-based interviews, usability testing

Role

UX Designer & Researcher

Led all visual design and UI development, created modular component system for scalability, established design direction. Co-designed survey, facilitated card sorting and co-design sessions, conducted stakeholder interviews, led usability testing.

The Challenge

Health Initiative Without a Digital Home

As a new initiative within the Coalition for Global Hepatitis Elimination, the Task Force for Global Health needed a standalone digital platform to establish COR-HepB’s identity.

The lack of a dedicated platform created three barriers - limited stakeholder engagement, no centralized access to research updates, and low visibility among potential donors and collaborators.

How might we

How might we design a platform that communicates complex operational research, and improves visibility and engagement for global healthcare stakeholders?

The Solution

COR-HepB as a credible, accessible hub for researchers, policymakers and donors worldwide

We designed a high-fidelity website prototype with clear information architecture, dedicated research and funding sections, and a scalable brand system. The platform positions COR-HepB as the authoritative source for HepB research while enabling Task Force staff to maintain and expand content independently.

Discover

Understanding a Global, Niche Audience

With stakeholders across 28+ countries and a dual-audience challenge, we needed to capture both breadth (content priorities) and depth (mental models). Rather than treating research as isolated phases, we designed them to converge toward shared design priorities.

15 Content Audits

Benchmarked public-health sites to find gaps and best practices for donors and researchers

Key Finding

Research content was often buried within advocacy pages, reducing discoverability and perceived credibility.

65 Stakeholder Survey

Captured large-scale signals on information needs, trust markers & research behavior across regions and roles

Key Finding

80% of respondents prioritized access to research databases and funding opportunities over general awareness content

8 Task-based Interviews

Integrated interviews and co-design to reveal how stakeholders interpret, prioritize, and organize info

Key Finding

Participants consistently organized content by action (learn, apply, fund) rather than by organizational structure

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Originally planned as focus groups, we pivoted to one-on-one task-based interviews due to global scheduling constraints across time zones

Research Insights

Findings and Content Priorities

A consistent picture emerged around how global stakeholders seek, interpret, and act on operational health research

Research Content Must Be Front and Center

Competitive analysis showed that many peer organizations buried research within advocacy sections, relying on text-heavy pages or static downloadable reports. 80% participants instead signaled a strong need for an interactive research portal that supports exploration, synthesis, and collaboration.

The platform needed to function as a utility-first research hub for a specialized global audience

Users think in actions, not org structures

Pressure-testing our initial site structure during interviews showed a clear mismatch with user mental models. Through tree testing and content outlining, participants consistently organized content by intent (learn, explore, fund) and expected funding information under task-oriented labels like “Get Involved.”

Structure navigation around user intents with action-oriented labels that match stakeholder mental models

Preliminary Menu Structure (based on secondary research and content audit) used to validate site structure during Stakeholder interviews

Initial tree testing showed a 50% success rate

Trust Markers Are Essential for Niche Scientific Audiences

Researchers and policymakers, particularly from low- and middle-income countries, needed clear credibility signals such as affiliations, transparent methods, and visible study details. Confusion around COR-HepB’s relationship with its parent organizations undermined trust.

Clarify organizational context with visual diagrams, show metadata (location, methodology, status) on study cards, and reinforce institutional affiliations

Speed and Scannability Trump Visual Sophistication

Participants seemed to prioritized quick links, clear headings, and minimal scrolling, valuing scannable content structure. Dense text, deep navigation hierarchies, and slow content discovery led to friction.

Implement modular content blocks, prominent CTAs, and consistent visual hierarchy across all pages.

Co-design

Information Architecture & Sitemap

Based on research insights and early validation through tree testing, we designed the site's information architecture to support primary user intents while remaining flexible for future growth.

The structure organizes around three core user journeys: Explore Research (for researchers seeking evidence), Get Involved (for donors and partners), and About (for context). This action-oriented architecture tested 22% better in Round 2 tree testing.

Visual Design

Visual System & Components

Working within the Task Force’s brand constraints, I extended the existing palette and typography into a flexible design system:

Custom cards for research studies, outcomes, and metrics

Reusable sections for impact stats, methodologies, and calls‑to‑action
Consistent patterns across homepage, research, and funding flows

This system was designed to support future pages and content types as COR‑HEPB expands.

Project completed as part of HCI Applications Studio at Georgia Tech
in collaboration with Task Force for Global Health