DiaLog
A patient centered Platform-as-a-Service to help navigate diagnosis uncertainties by symptom tracking, sense making, and consultation preparation.
BRIEF: For the Student Service Design Challenge, Expanding Self-Confidence Horizons, a brief sponsored by Philips. We identified diagnosis limbo, a critical, underserved self-care gap for women aged 25–45 in the UK, where patients navigate symptoms, emotions, and decisions without validation or support.
MY ROLE: Research operations, strategic synthesis participant recruitment, qualitative research with patients and healthcare providers, workshop design and facilitation, service strategy.
TEAM: Richa Kejriwal, Maya Burnand, Miran Jurisevic, Lucia Perez Gonzalez, Kate Winbaum, Jessica Wonomihardjo, Vivien Fergusson.
CONTEXT
In UK, patients have long wait timings and often receive inconclusive medical diagnoses. Many factors shape their experiences and women are disproportionately affected.
5.7m
Women await a diagnosis in the UK as of 2022
2y 3m
Avg time for women’s health diagnostic journey
8years
Avg time taken to diagnose
Endometriosis
Time is not the only challenge. Patient’s experience are affected by:
Fragmented patient records (patients lose continuity and repeat their story)
Compressed consultation times (many GP consultations last 15–20 minutes)
Emotionally unsafe interactions (patients report dismissal, “gaslighting,” or unpredictability across clinicians)
Misinformation (self-diagnosis and misinformation can amplify anxiety)
Image: Patient Journey Map
Diagnosis Limbo is a prolonged period of uncertainty
when someone has symptoms but no clear diagnosis
Image: Stages of Diagnostic Limbo
RESEARCH INSIGHTS
20 IN DEPTH INTERVIEWS (13 PATIENTS & 7 HEALTHCARE PRACTITIONERS)
Image: Patient empathy map based on patient audio/ video interviews.
PATIENT’S CHALLENGES
Patients feel marginalised and alone
Despite how common this experience is, every interviewee described feeling isolated in their journey — especially when their condition lacked a clear name or diagnosis.
Communication is frustrating
Patients often feel dismissed or gaslit by medical professionals, while also struggling to piece together or recall patterns in their own symptoms and experiences.
Failed by the healthcare system
Systemic failures make the journey feel endless and disheartening. Many patients expressed a desire to regain control, often resorting to self-advocacy and independent research to find answers.
HEALTHCARE PRACTITIONER’S (HCP) CHALLENGES
HCPs must run a tight schedule
Most GP visits last 15–20 minutes, with HCPs juggling patient care and admin. There is a high demand for appointments, but a limited capacity to deliver them, leading to rushed consultations and patient dissatisfaction.
Rise of self-diagnosis
Patients often turn to the internet for answers. While it can empower them, it also risks misinformation and anxiety, sometimes complicating appointments or delaying proper treatment.
HCPs may react to patients’ emotions in differently
Patients often arrive feeling emotional or frustrated. Some HCPs may take this personally, while others feel sympathy and try to offer extra support. Since patients rarely see the same doctor, reactions vary, making the doctor-patient relationship feel unpredictable.
Image: Problem Mapping categorised, synthesised and organised based on the scale of control.
INDIVIDUAL & INTERPERSONAL LEVEL CHALLENGES
Advocacy Behaviour
Patient advocacy varies based on how individuals navigate diagnosis limbo.
Negative Emotions
Patients in diagnosis limbo often face overwhelming negative emotions.
Community & Biases
Many patients in diagnosis limbo feel isolated as they struggle to find relatable supports. .
INSTITUTIONAL & STRUCTURAL LEVEL CHALLENGES
Medical Administration
Long wait times and difficulty booking appointments make navigating the system stressful.
Doctor-Patient Relationship
Doctors often fail to provide emotional support due to the lack of a personal relationship.
Fragmented Data & Poor UX
Fragmented medical data forces patients to repeatedly explain their history to different doctors.
Healthcare Cost Burden
Diagnosis limbo burdens the healthcare system, with delays leading to inefficiencies and economic losses.
Medical Literacy & Education
Many struggle to navigate medical information that is complex and often inaccessible.
Gender Inequality in Healthcare
Women’s health is stigmatized in society and under researched leading to gender data gap in the system.
DESIGN OPPORTUNITY
How might we support women during phases of diagnostic limbo to receive support across their journey as they navigate complex medical systems?
REFRAME & REDEFINE
Image: Co-design workshop, engaging both patients, medical practitioners.
Interviews and co-design workshops deepened our understanding of both patient and healthcare provider behaviours. Initial ideation spanned experiential, technological, financial, and social models.
Self-initiated suggestions
Tools to develop self-advocacy skills and confidence
Support for emotional and mental wellbeing
Behavioural change resources for patients navigating uncertainty
Systems-led ideas
Mapping touchpoints across public and private sectors
Identifying leverage points to improve patient experiences
Enhancing interactions between patients and providers
Image: Mapping patient behavioural traits
KEY TAKEAWAY
A patient's mindset is a key factor in navigating diagnosis limbo, especially when external systems fall short.
Developing the right mindset empowers patients to take an active role in their health, even in ambiguity. Key influencing factors include:
Outlook and disposition
Emotional regulation and cognitive state
Health literacy and sense of agency
System dependence and social context
BREAKTHROUGH
Diagnosis limbo should not be treated merely as the absence of a diagnosis rather a diagnosis in itself.
STRATEGY & SOLUTION
Introducing DiaLog, a platform-as-a-service, empowers patients to track symptoms, store records, and access trusted medical insights. It offers personalized guidance for medical conversations, connects users with global doctors, and visualizes key health patterns. Patients can find and connect with others on similar journeys and contribute to research that advances gender inclusive care.
Image: Patient facing App - DiaLog
DIALOG: SERVICE BLUEPRINT
DIALOG: SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MODEL CANVAS
IMPACT
*Projected based on feedback from HCPs and research participants.
↓ 5-10%
Reduced repeat GP visits. By improving narrative continuity and consultation readiness, fewer appointments are used to re-explain symptoms or restart diagnostic conversations.
↑ 2-3min
More efficient consultations. Structured histories and clearer priorities support faster context-building. More focused clinical conversations within time-limited.
↑ 15-18%
Improved patient confidence Validation, continuity, and guided sense-making reduce anxiety and increase perceived agency during prolonged uncertainty.
FEEDBACK
“This project took our breath away. DiaLog looks at the problem of diagnosis limbo from multiple angles and provides a number of ways to track, understand, and connect around symptoms. The service is robust and offers a unique and fitting experience for every individual. We commend the team for using both qualitative and quantitative research to design a service with empathy at its core”
— Philips' Team
“DiaLog is a standout project in both societal relevance and design excellence. It successfully reframes diagnosis limbo as a condition worthy of recognition. DiaLog stands out as a model for responsible, inclusive service design in healthcare. It refines an eclectic experience. Delivers a credible and compassionate solution and demonstrates the systemic potential of design. When it centers human dignity. It bridges the gender health gap. Of women with measurable psychological and systemic benefits.”
— Eliisa Sarkkinen (Chapter Lead of the Service Design Network Finland)
“I would put all my notes and medical references into DiaLog if it existed. It simplifies things a lot.”
— Patient in 4-Year Diagnosis Limbo
“DiaLog will allow patients to feel satisfied in their approach to their illness and help build better interpersonal relationships, which invariably leads to better healthcare.”
— NHS Medical Doctor (MD)