Team:
Andrea Lacorazza, Dori Jacobson, Joseph Kwesiga, Jordan Levine, Kamari Patrick, Katie Stahlhuth, Katy Ashe, Saehee Lee, Zach Witkin
Role:
While working with the YLabs team, I was responsible for product design, low to high-fidelity prototyping, remote testing, and synthesis. In developing the product, I worked alongside developers and the product manager to deliver the final product.
Problem:
In the U.S., many youths lack the necessary information to make informed health decisions and face barriers to accessing care. By age 19, 71% are sexually active, yet only 43% of high schools provide comprehensive sex education. This leads young people to rely on unreliable sources for information. Almost 50% of new STI cases are in individuals aged 15-24, with increased risks for youth of color and LGBTQ+ individuals.
Solution:
Asking For A Friend is a website that provides a bridge to action for young people; transforming youth healthcare with informed choices and seamless access to their most stigmatized health care needs.
Key offerings:
Decision Support is A virtual counselor that addresses sexual health concerns and provides evidence-based, stigma-free information through interactive quizzes driven by the most pressing questions that young people have.
Service Wayfinder is a no-stress linkage to care where we guide young people by directly addressing their top concerns around the legality, affordability, and confidentiality of accessing health care. Turning traditionally difficult-to-navigate government programs into simple step-by-step instructions that make it possible for youth to access benefits.
FAQs are a collection of questions youths may be afraid/hesitant to ask that covering a range of topics.
Outcome:
Launched in California on June 1, 2024, and co-designed with 270 youths (94% people of color, 57% LGBTQ+), the website has reached significant milestones as of November 2024: over 1 million social media views, 54,442 website views, 28,000 unique users, 92% month-to-month growth, and over 5,000 completed Decision Support quizzes.
