How Atomic Design Methodology Revolutionized Design for a Healthcare Data Provider

In the winter of 2018, I worked as a Product Designer for a healthcare big data provider based in South Bend, Indiana as part of Accenture Digital. The client was known for creating and distributing patient satisfaction surveys, and its Medical Practice Survey was the most widely used outpatient satisfaction survey in the United States as of January 2017. The client was going through a Digital Transformation process that included integrating technology into all business areas as well as changing how the company operated and delivered value to customers. My role as the project’s UX designer was to identify and document the need for a standardized approach to design, which led to the creation of a comprehensive design system.

I also assisted in the design and documentation of numerous components, as well as the creation of a Product Development Kit to house all of the documentation. I trained and coached team members to provide their own direction.

The design system reduced design time by nearly 60%, providing the development team with a finished list of elements used within the applications as well as a description of how each element interacted with the app’s entire ecosystem. This enabled the team to define a new design language for the entire application ecosystem, as well as organize, maintain, and create scalable products.

We used the Atomic Design methodology to structure the system, dividing our product pages into applications, features, templates, components, basics, elements, styles, and principles. The goal of V1.0 was to lay the groundwork by developing a comprehensive, scalable visual language and atomic components that could be reused and combined to create user experiences.

The alignment of all teams on the differences in the parts we would be designing and building was critical to the system’s success. Components are unique UI elements designed to be reused throughout a product, whereas patterns are recurring elements or practices found throughout a product, such as navigation, tables, notifications, alerts, or modals. To create and maintain the design system, a cross-functional collaboration was required, as well as an agile approach using design sprints that included design critiques and regular reviews to keep tasks manageable and identify and address problems quickly.

The project taught me more about the design thinking framework process, how to create better visuals using material design guidelines, and how to empathize with users more effectively.