Design Theory for Health Care Solutions
- Continuing Education
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Overview
This two-day course aims to develop the skills for cross-disciplinary experiential learning on how to innovate in the healthcare space. It equips physicians, nurses, social workers, therapists, and other health care professionals with the skills necessary to identify challenges and develop innovative solutions in health care. It equips designers, engineers, and non-healthcare professionals with a unique opportunity to innovate alongside healthcare professionals in an immersive team-based environment to solve deeper healthcare challenges. Teams will learn to deepen their understanding of the design process with exercises augmented with a custom GPT, Aurora. Learn how AI can amplify the design thinking process.
Participants will engage in a structured, hands-on learning experience that fosters problem-solving through an iterative and collaborative approach. The course will guide them through the five stages of Design Thinking, augmented by a human-centered design AI assistant:
- Empathy – Teams will learn to challenge assumptions, defer judgment, and deeply understand end users' perspectives and lived experiences (patients, families, and caregivers). Get to the root cause and synthesize learnings into a "synthetic" persona that represents the unmet need using Aurora GPT.
- Define – Frame the problem based on insights gained from the empathy stage, ensuring a clear and actionable problem statement. Contextualize the problem into hypothetical scenarios using Aurora GPT.
- Ideate – Generate a range of possible solutions without limitations in time-boxed exercises, where Aurora GPT will help your team develop a value proposition.
- Prototype – Develop tangible representations of solutions for real-world application, using a mix of low-fidelity materials and AI-driven prototyping tools.
- Test & Iterate – Gather feedback from testing and refine solutions through an ongoing, non-linear, and iterative process. Simulate potential impact to a synthetic persona.
A key focus of this course is AI-driven Human-Centered Design, which expands problem-solving beyond individual users to consider community and societal impact. Participants will explore creating ethical, just, sustainable, and responsible solutions while anticipating unintended consequences, augmented by a custom GPT.
Through collaborative breakout sessions, teams will apply these concepts to an agreed-upon health care challenge. The course culminates in a solution pitch, where teams present their ideas and receive constructive feedback from peers.
By the end of this course, participants will have developed a practical understanding of Design Theory as a tool for driving transformation in health care, empowering them to implement meaningful and impactful changes in their organizations.
Learning Objectives
- Define Human-Centered Design (HCD) and its principles.
- Understand the role of AI in the HCD process.
- Explore the historical context and significance of HCD in health care.
- Identify the key differences between HCD and other design approaches (e.g., user-centered design, systems design).
- Apply Design Thinking and HCD methods to identify gaps and develop innovative healthcare solutions.
- Work collaboratively in interdisciplinary teams to integrate diverse perspectives in problem-solving and solution generation.
- Create and present a concise pitch of the proposed solution, ensuring all key points are effectively communicated.
Developed and Offered By:
Participant Types
Faculty
Harvard Medical School Continuing Education attracts the best and brightest faculty from all around the world. As a student in this course, you’ll have access to outstanding course directors and faculty.
Hiyam M. Nadel
MBA, RN, CCG
- Director, Center for Innovations in Care Delivery, Massachusetts General Hospital
Kim Whalen
RN, MS, CCRN
- Nurse Director Pediatric Intensive Care Mass General
- Nursing Accredited Provider Director, Harvard Medical School
Nour Al-Sultan, MBA, MPH
Senior Health System Partnerships Lead at Midi Health
Rachael Acker
Design Strategist & Health Architect
Founder, Healthero.io
Sunand Bhattacharya
AVP, Design & Innovation Strategies, Office of the Vice Provost for Research
Professor of the Practice, Human-centered Design, School of Social Work, Boston College
Ryan W. Carroll, MD, MPH
Attending Physician, Pediatric Critical Care Medicine
Director, Global Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Mass General for Children
Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School
Nat Sims, MD
Newbower & Eitan MGH Endowed Chair in Biomedical Technology Innovation, Department of Anesthesia, Massachusetts General Hospital
Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School
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Course Fees
Fee Disclaimer
You may register through our secure online environment and will receive an email confirmation upon receipt of your payment.
Prices include CME credit, electronic syllabus and access to recordings for 30 days after the course.
At the end of the registration process, a $10 non-refundable processing fee will be added to your registration.
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Discounts are available for health profession students and teams. Please inquire at learn@hms.harvard.edu.
Accreditation
The Harvard Medical School designates this live activity for a maximum of 10.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Harvard Medical School designates this In Person activity for a maximum of 10.75 ANCC contact hour(s), of which 3.00 is eligible for pharmacology credit.
The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) states that AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ are acceptable for continuing medical education requirements for recertification. We would also suggest that learners check with their state licensing board to ensure they accept reciprocity with AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ for re-licensure.
The American Medical Association (AMA) has an agreement of mutual recognition of continuing medical education (CME) credit with the European Union of Medical Specialties (UEMS). Additional information regarding this agreement may be found on the European Union of Medical Specialties website.
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada recognizes conferences and workshops held outside of Canada that are developed by a university, academy, hospital, specialty society or college as accredited group learning activities.