Why I Chose Healthcare: Designing for the People Who Care for People

My first day in healthcare UX was May 2, 2022. I didn’t know exactly what I was getting myself into, but I was there because I wanted my work to matter more.

After years in advertising, where success was often measured by perception, client approval, and awards, I wanted something different. I wanted to feel connected to the impact of my work.

Healthcare felt like the right place to find it.

A Different Measure of Success

Growing up, I watched my parents give their time to help others. Volunteering was simply part of life in my family. I didn’t realize until much later how deeply that shaped me.

And the nurses in my life — especially my mom and my daughter — showed me what it looks like to dedicate your work to helping people.

I knew I wasn’t going to be a clinician. But I wanted my work to reflect the same values: compassion, service, responsibility.

Healthcare seemed like the right place to do that.

The Business of Healthcare — and the People Inside It

My first exposure to healthcare UX was on the payer side: Medicare Advantage, compliance requirements, deadlines, risk scores, administrative workflows. At first, it felt like the business of healthcare — the part driven by cost containment and profit.

But once I started conducting user research and talking directly to the people doing the work, the picture changed.

Care Managers and Pharmacists are the front line for Medicare Advantage members — people who are often recently discharged, medically fragile, and dealing with complex needs. And their work is anything but simple.

Care Managers juggle competing deadlines, strict compliance rules, constant context switching, and detailed requirements for every member they engage. They ask questions about a member’s condition, their safety, their access to food and transportation, and whether they have support at home. And it’s not all done over the phone — some Care Managers visit members in their homes and see their conditions firsthand.

Pharmacists bring another layer of responsibility. They review long, complex medication lists, check for interactions, and make sure they have a current and accurate understanding of exactly what the member is taking. Their work can prevent dangerous combinations, adverse reactions, or complications that could send a patient back to the hospital.

From a business perspective, the goal is straightforward:

Manage the most vulnerable members closely to avoid expensive medical treatments, especially hospital admissions.

But from a human perspective, it’s something else entirely:

Provide care to vulnerable patients when they need it most.

These aren’t abstract “users.”

They’re people doing difficult, meaningful work to keep patients safe during the most fragile days after a hospital stay.

So I asked myself a simple question:

What can I do, as a designer, to make their workday less complicated and more effective?

That question motivates me to do better, and reminds me of who the work is really for.

Why Healthcare Still Matters to Me Today

Today at Evolent, the work still sits at the intersection of healthcare and complexity — but the purpose is clearer. We focus on reducing the cost and barriers to care for people facing some of the most complex conditions: oncology, radiology, musculoskeletal issues. We still work with payers and providers, but the goal is simple:

Make sure people get the right care at the right time.

It’s still healthcare. It’s still complicated. But it’s meaningful.

Because the work supports the people who support patients.

A Reason to Care

I didn’t choose healthcare because it was the most interesting industry.

I chose it because it was the most meaningful one.

I wanted my work to matter. I wanted to help people who help people. And I wanted to build tools that make someone’s hardest day a little easier.

I chose healthcare because it gave me a reason to care. I’ve stayed because that reason has only gotten stronger.