Using Design Thinking to Explore Stress and Maternal Mortality
While several interventions using print materials, group-based activities, and media-based technology individually have shown to increase health-related knowledge, the effect of these interventions combined is still undetermined (Berkman et al., 2011). In addition, most cross-platform transmedia interventions aimed to improve health outcomes focus on the needs of teens or adolescents. Few interventions focused specifically on health literacy education and application of health knowledge, target adults. There have been even fewer transmedia interventions that target African American older adults.
"By creating an educational resource that aims to inform Black women of the difficulties and risks they may face before, during, or after pregnancy, they will have a tool tailored to their maternal needs."
In 2017, researchers from the University of California created a transmedia storytelling intervention that included story-based videos, interactive video sequences, and a video-character influenced blog to benefit Latina women’s mental health. As the largest ethnic minority group in the United States, Latinos report more symptoms of anxiety, symptoms of depression, and receive less mental health care than white U.S. adults. Researchers collaborated with therapists and a Latino writer-director to create a web-based transmedia intervention to combat this issue. After six weeks of engaging with the intervention, women reported higher levels of confidence in their ability to seek help. Their perceived confidence was also associated with lower levels of depression and anxiety symptoms (Heilemann. Soderlund, Kehoe, & Brecht, 2017). This is a great example of how transmedia storytelling can be a feasible intervention strategy for health education in a specific demographic.
This creative project uses design thinking to explore the maternal mortality knowledge in Indiana. The goal of this study is to design a digital health resource to help Black women in Indiana understand the importance of this issue and give them the opportunity to use credible information to make the best decisions for their health. Design thinking as a method of research will be employed to understand the needs and wants of Black women in Indiana and to engage with them on a personal level. By creating an educational resource that aims to inform Black women of the difficulties and risks they may face before, during, or after pregnancy, they will have a tool tailored to their maternal needs. This study will also provide insight into how Black women best receive health information that is important to them.
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