Ever launch something you were super excited about... only to hear crickets? In this episode of Public Health Curated, we explore how design thinking can transform your public health initiatives by putting human needs at the center of everything you create.
Key Takeaways
- Design thinking puts community needs at the center of program development
- The fundamental difference between creating for people versus creating with people
- The five key stages of design thinking: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, Test
- How design thinking naturally builds equity into public health work
Episode Highlights
The Power of Learning from "Failures"
I shared an embarrassing story from nearly a decade ago when I launched a podcast and online program for women's health and empowerment based purely on intuition and vibes—with no real research, evidence base, or community input. While the program didn't go far, it taught me one of the most valuable lessons in my public health journey: the fundamental difference between creating for people versus creating with people.
Fast forward to today, and I'm approaching Public Health Curated completely differently. Using design thinking principles, we're co-creating with our community, testing assumptions, and building based on real needs—not just what feels right.
Understanding Design Thinking for Public Health
Design thinking is a framework that puts human needs at the center of everything we create. It follows five key stages:
- Empathize: Actually understanding our community's experiences
- Define: Getting crystal clear on the real problem
- Ideate: Generating creative solutions
- Prototype: Testing ideas quickly and cheaply
- Test: Getting feedback and iterating
Real-World Application
Let's revisit my women's health program example. Using design thinking, instead of building a curriculum based on assumptions, I would have started by:
- Having coffee with potential participants
- Shadowing women navigating health services
- Creating journey maps of their experiences
- Testing small pieces of content before building a whole program
Transforming Common Public Health Challenges
Design thinking isn't just about creating programs—it's about transforming how we solve problems. Take something we all deal with: low turnout at health education sessions.
Traditional approach:
- Blame lack of community interest
- Add more incentives
- Create more flyers
Design thinking approach:
- Shadow community members for a day to understand their schedules
- Map out all the barriers to attendance
- Prototype different meeting formats
- Test various locations and times
- Co-create content with community members
Building Equity Through Design Thinking
What's beautiful about design thinking in public health is that it automatically builds equity into our work. When we truly understand and co-create with our communities, we're not just making more effective programs—we're transforming how power works in public health.
Your Action Steps
- Pick one program or service you're working on right now
- Spend 30 minutes talking to someone who uses (or should use) your service
- Draw their journey map
- Identify one assumption you can test
- Share your insights using #PHCdesignthinking
Join the Conversation
What assumptions have you made about your community or programs that might need testing? Have you tried design thinking approaches in your public health work? Share your experiences in the comments below.
About the Host: Veronica Sek-Shubert, MPH, is the founder of Public Health Curated and a DrPH candidate at Tulane University. With over 15 years of experience in non-for-profit and public health spaces, she's dedicated to helping professionals rediscover their spark while creating meaningful system change.