Client
Gillvray Health is a UK-based healthcare provider focused on holistic and long-term chronic disease management. Integrating lifestyle medicine with traditional care they improve long-term patient outcomes.
Gillvray Health is a UK-based healthcare provider focused on holistic and long-term chronic disease management. Integrating lifestyle medicine with traditional care they improve long-term patient outcomes.
Challenge
Chronic disease patients often struggle to achieve better health despite standard medical care. A holistic approach that combines lifestyle and behavioural changes with conventional treatments is critical. NHS doctors face significant time limitations restricting their ability to guide patients through sustainable health improvements. Private healthcare alternatives are often prohibitively expensive.
Chronic disease patients often struggle to achieve better health despite standard medical care. A holistic approach that combines lifestyle and behavioural changes with conventional treatments is critical. NHS doctors face significant time limitations restricting their ability to guide patients through sustainable health improvements. Private healthcare alternatives are often prohibitively expensive.
Solution
In collaboration with Gillvray Health I designed Cara (Irish for "trusted ally") a patient-centric app that offers personalised and ongoing support. Cara is based on behavioural sciences and helps patients build sustainable habits and better manage their chronic conditions. The app complements Gillvray Health’s current treatment programmes bridging the gap between patients and doctors. It enables physicians to set initial treatment plans and monitor real-time patient data while providing personal continuous support to patients. This dual model promotes lasting behavioural change by leveraging patient accountability improving doctor-patient engagement and reducing costs compared to standard private healthcare options.
In collaboration with Gillvray Health I designed Cara (Irish for "trusted ally") a patient-centric app that offers personalised and ongoing support. Cara is based on behavioural sciences and helps patients build sustainable habits and better manage their chronic conditions. The app complements Gillvray Health’s current treatment programmes bridging the gap between patients and doctors. It enables physicians to set initial treatment plans and monitor real-time patient data while providing personal continuous support to patients. This dual model promotes lasting behavioural change by leveraging patient accountability improving doctor-patient engagement and reducing costs compared to standard private healthcare options.
Driving Sustainable Behaviour Change
Cara’s design is rooted in behavioural science and created in collaboration with psychologists and physicians. Behavioural audits enabled us to balance users’ self-accountability with extrinsic guidance address ability blockers and identify intervention opportunities. Insights highlighted the power of personalisation and tapping into users’ intrinsic motivation to foster long-term behavioural change. The behavioural research informed nuanced feedback loops CST-based gradual goal-setting progress tracking and tailored nudges to support the patients’ journey while remaining feasible for healthcare providers.
Cara’s design is rooted in behavioural science and created in collaboration with psychologists and physicians. Behavioural audits enabled us to balance users’ self-accountability with extrinsic guidance address ability blockers and identify intervention opportunities. Insights highlighted the power of personalisation and tapping into users’ intrinsic motivation to foster long-term behavioural change. The behavioural research informed nuanced feedback loops CST-based gradual goal-setting progress tracking and tailored nudges to support the patients’ journey while remaining feasible for healthcare providers.
Behavioural Audits
Feature Mapping
Features
Scaling Up Positive Impact
Cara successfully completed a 12-week pilot with a diabetes-focused group demonstrating its potential to drive meaningful improvements in chronic disease management. As a next step we will establish a meaningful measuring framework for Cara’s long-term health impact and patient satisfaction as drivers for further refinements.
Cara successfully completed a 12-week pilot with a diabetes-focused group demonstrating its potential to drive meaningful improvements in chronic disease management. As a next step we will establish a meaningful measuring framework for Cara’s long-term health impact and patient satisfaction as drivers for further refinements.
