Research
Interview Guided
Purpose
Based on the problem statement, this interview guide was created to help understand and analyze the need of our users in order to solve the problem.
Interview Goals
Warm-Up
1.
Understand people's attitudes to OTC medicines.
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Find out the reasons why people overuse or misuse OTC medicines.
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Figure out how to help users pay better attention to their medication habits.
2.
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3.
Overview
Thanks for participating
Introduction
School Project
Get information about users' habits of OTC medications.
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Expectations
Time frame (30 minutes).
Able to leave at any time.
Answer only questions that are comfortable.
No right or wrong answers.
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Permission to record (Start recording)
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“Hello, my name is Stella Fan, I’m a student at the Academy of Art University. I’m currently working on an App that helps people avoid overusing and misusing OTC medications. OTC medications are very common in our daily life. However, there are a lot of people who do not really know about the proper usage of OTC medications or pay attention to the doses. Many people have potential physical health risks due to the misuse of OTC medications. My goal is to spread knowledge and reduce the risks associated with OTC medications and help people take OTC medications in a correct and healthy way.
Thanks for your help!”
To General Publications
Personal Information
Can you tell us a little about yourself—your age, what you do, and your lifestyle?
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Background
Do you think you are a person who cares about health? Why?
On the scale from 1-5, how confident are you with your knowledge of OTC medications?
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Experience
During your daily life, under what circumstances may you need to take OTC medications? How often?
Do you usually pay attention to the dosage and usage of OTC medications? In what way?
How do you pay attention to the side effect of OTC medicines?
What type of OTC medications have you taken? Do you know any notices of these medicines？
Please share your attitude towards taking medicines. Do you take medicine as soon as you get sick or do you see the doctor first?
Resource
Where do you usually get information about OTC medications? Medicines label? Online? or Doctor?
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Have you ever used a medication APP? How was the experience?
If you were to have an app to manage your OTC medicines, what function do you desire the most?
Is there anything else you would like to share?
To Medication Professionals
1. What do you think are the main reasons for people to use OTC medicines incorrectly?
2. What do you think are the current causes of overusing OTC medicines for most people?
3. Can you tell us which age groups are most likely to overuse or misuse OTC medications?
​4. Which OTC medicines are more likely to be misused？
5. What are the notes for OTC medicines that you think are most easily overlooked by patients？
6. What do you think people are most concerned about when they need OTC medications？
7. What do you think is the biggest difficulty when people have OTC medications without a
doctor’s prescription? How to solve it?
8. Anything you want to add on?
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Interview Summaries
Dominik (20)
Cultural Communication
(Student)
“When I feel uncomfortable,
I would look for the appropriate medicine first.”
1. Believes that young people use OTC medicines more often.
2. Has little knowledge of OTC medicines.
3. Pay little attention to drug side effects.
4. Understands the basic information about medication through websites.
Eva (26)
Graphic Designer
(Student)
“I take OTC medicines almost every day to relieve
my insomnia and headaches and I do pay particular attention to the dose in case
the medication affects my
daily work.”
1. Knows more about OTC medicines.
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2. Believes that when taking multiple OTC medicines, it is important to learn about the timing and dosage.
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3. Thinks that some people can try to relieve insomnia and headaches in other ways.
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4. Has never used a medication APP.
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5. Hopes that the APP can have a dosage calculation function based on personal habits.
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Marten (48)
Surgeon
“Some patients have the perception that anything that can be purchased without
a prescription is not actually
a drug.”
1. Believes that many people lack awareness of the risks of OTC medicines.
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2. Thinks that over-reliance on OTC medicines can be avoided through proper medication habits.
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3. Believes that young people are more likely to overuse OTC drugs than middle-aged people.
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4. Thinks that most people want the medicine to take effect immediately, but in fact, it takes time to alleviate some symptoms.
Chera (27)
Freelance Designer
“I'd like to google the medicine that I need to take and
I can get all the information that I want.”
May (33)
“For my three-year-old daughter, I have to pay much attention to the dosage
of the medications, side effects, and allergies. It is not easy
for me.”
Project Manager
(Single Mother)
David (58)
Lawyer
“I've never used medication app, I usually contact
my doctor directly.”
1. Thinks that the most commonly used OTC medicines are cold medicine,
stomach medicine, and vitamins.
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2. Prefers not to go to the hospitals and would rather find medicines by herself because it saves more time.
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3. Considers reading instructions a bit annoying and only focuses on the dosage of the medicine.
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1. Likes apps that easy to operate, quick, and efficient.
2. Hopes that there are clear and understandable medication prompts for children.
3. Wants a medication app that can manage the medication for the whole family.
1. Focuses more on the reliability of information sources.
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2. Hopes that the app has the function of health assessment.
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3. Wants a medication app that includes experts' advice and can contact the doctor efficiently.
Affinity Map
Research Themes/Insights
What people need to know is not only the right doses of OTC medicines
but also the correct choices of OTC medicines, their side effects,
active ingredients, inactive ingredients, and how to follow
instructions efficiently.
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The functions of medication management in the app should have different preferences according to different physical conditions of users.
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An online platform can be used to share experiences and promote communication between users and doctors in order to help users to get correct guidance in a timely manner.
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Some users have higher standards on the sources of medication information, therefore the information provided must be authoritative.
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The app should provide an integrated medication management system while catering to the different needs of users.
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The translation function of medication instructions can help people better understand and use the medicine correctly.
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