Sharp Health Plan, a non-profit commercial health plan located in San Diego, California, was unsatisfied with the way its customers accessed insurance information. It envisioned enhancing member access to payor information through a custom mobile app and portal integrated with Epic as its foundation. However, the organization recognized a gap in Epic apps’ payor insurance capabilities. Seeking to address this, Sharp Health Plan partnered with Modea to develop a dedicated app and portal. These digital tools seamlessly integrate with Epic and are tailored to include essential plan functions.
Our team worked closely to determine two main goals for this work:
Modea’s UX/UI team performed an extensive analysis of data provided by Sharp Health Plan. The existing research undertaken by the Sharp Health Plan team led our team to uncover various gaps and challenges customers faced. The research encompassed personas, interviews, and customer care data that indicated the wants, needs, and problems members faced. Sharp Health Plan possessed valuable information, but lacked the resources needed to assemble the puzzle pieces.
Modea expanded its research efforts by engaging with key stakeholders and conducting an industry evaluation. This evaluation specifically delved into the landscape of Sharp Health Plan’s competitors, offering a comprehensive analysis of the user experience and navigation across their respective websites.
We also played a crucial role in crafting personas based on Sharp Health Plan’s primary audiences. This approach facilitated the identification of user flows, enabling us to collaborate effectively with Epic. Through this collaboration, we pinpointed the features to include, identified existing gaps, and explored opportunities for customization.
Ultimately, the research led to the conclusion that Sharp Health Plan members needed a payor app and portal that had EHR integration and customizable features to enhance the user experience.
Modea worked closely with Epic to ascertain the features that will be included in the app through Epic’s standard design, and what needs to be customized. Modea, Sharp, and Epic worked together to create a wireframe with the ideal state of the app and particular features the Sharp Health Plan team wanted to include. This collaborative effort was critical to the app development by helping gauge what would and wouldn’t be available in custom design.
Our team improved Sharp Health Plan’s member experience by integrating data tiles and Software Development Kits (SDKs), offering a customized experience while upholding the brand. The use of SDKs in the mobile app streamlines processes, enhances functionality, and simplifies development for efficient and convenient on-the-go access to healthcare details. The mobile app offers:
The Web portal integrates Epic data tiles, and the mobile app uses an Epic SDK, seamlessly connecting member health data across channels. This unified omnichannel access through a single health plan login offers a cohesive experience, with Epic data tiles enabling direct access to relevant medical records. The portal, accessible through both the app and website, serves as a gateway to plan functions, marking one of the first payer collaborations with Epic and demonstrating our commitment to digital healthcare innovation.
Throughout the design and development process, strict adherence to California laws regarding insurance and privacy was a crucial consideration. This ensured that the product not only meets the highest standards of functionality but also complies with the regulatory framework governing insurance and privacy in the state.
We maintained accessibility standards throughout the design and development process. The product was built to meet the latest WCAG AA compliance standards, and we conduct ongoing accessibility audits and testing across all devices and user flows.
This project demonstrates how health plans can enhance member engagement by unifying payer and EHR capabilities. By combining in-depth research, collaborative design, and technical integration, Modea helped Sharp Health Plan deliver a compliant, personalized, and easy-to-use digital experience. Healthcare leaders can take note: thoughtful customization of Epic tools can transform the way members interact with their health coverage.
