From e914eca5ca80e5d26cfc638cc87add6a7616136e Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Jared Bain Date: Mon, 18 Nov 2024 14:41:24 -0500 Subject: [PATCH 1/8] VA OCTO case study --- _fellows/2023/jina-ryu.md | 2 +- ...roach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md | 74 +++++++++++++++++++ 2 files changed, 75 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-) create mode 100644 _projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md diff --git a/_fellows/2023/jina-ryu.md b/_fellows/2023/jina-ryu.md index 2f4dc94db..d490ac220 100644 --- a/_fellows/2023/jina-ryu.md +++ b/_fellows/2023/jina-ryu.md @@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ image: /assets/images/fellows/2023/jina-ryu.webp social: fellow social_image: /assets/images/social/fellows/social-jina-ryu.webp fellow_year: 2023 -project: ["na"] +project: ["va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms"] agency: ["VA"] hometown: San Jose, CA university: Johns Hopkins University diff --git a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md new file mode 100644 index 000000000..6d94e64de --- /dev/null +++ b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md @@ -0,0 +1,74 @@ +--- +id: va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms +agency: "Department of Veterans Affairs" +agency_abbrev: "VA" +agency_logo: "/assets/images/agencies/VA.webp" +title: "Designing with compassion: A trauma-informed approach to digitizing VA disability forms" +project_name: "Designing with compassion: A trauma-informed approach to digitizing VA disability forms" +summary: "" +project_url: +youtube_url: +impact_story_link: va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms +the_impact: true +the_approach: true +the_solution: false +skill_set: [ ] +tags: ['VA'] +impact_area: [] +status: ["current"] +--- +## *About VA OCTO* {#the-about} +The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is focused on delivering benefits and healthcare services to Veterans, family members and caregivers. The VA’s Office of the Chief Technology Officer (OCTO) is a team of problem solvers in civic tech from diverse backgrounds. OCTO manages the Veteran digital experience, consisting of public-facing websites and native mobile applications as well as the technical and operational infrastructure that supports that experience, all of which have a huge impact on the lives of millions of Veterans, their families, and the people that serve them. VA OCTO’s goal in hosting U.S. Digital Corps Fellows is to bring in fresh talent to join this mission-driven team to help create a better customer experience for Veterans and their families so that they can receive the benefits they've earned. + +## The challenge + +VA Form 21-0781 is an optional form that Veterans with mental health conditions can fill out to provide additional information in support of their disability claim. In June 2024, VA released a new version of the form with critical updates, including adding new questions, removing triggering questions, and expanding the scope of the form to ask about not just PTSD, but also all other mental health conditions. + +Some of the key constraints and challenges associated with making this update included: + +- **“Form within a form” -** The team needed to build the new VA Form 21-0781 within the broader disability compensation application (VA Form 21-526EZ), which is an already lengthy form itself. There were also some areas where both forms were asking for the same information in slightly different ways, creating some areas of redundancy that needed to be addressed. + +- **Sensitive subject matter -**Filling out VA Form 21-0781 is a very emotionally burdensome experience as it asks Veterans about their traumatic experiences from the military and the behavioral changes they experienced as a result. + + +## The approach + +A U.S. Digital Corps Design Fellow led the redesign of VA Form 21-0781. The Fellow owned the entire design process, from mapping out user flows to a round of concept testing to wireframing and multiple prototypes. The Fellow set up regular checkpoints with experts in trauma-informed design (e.g. social workers), the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), and OCTO colleagues, in order to ensure that all perspectives were considered throughout the process. + +To address the “form within a form” challenges, the Fellow: +- Established a new design pattern by adding a step to the disability application called “additional forms” and pulling out the 0781 into its own separate card and flow. +- Streamlined data collection by identifying areas of redundancy between the two forms, and solutionizing a way to collect all necessary information without being redundant, including grouping items with similar tasks together (ex. uploading documents). + +To address the “sensitive subject matter” consideration, the Fellow: +- Partnered with social workers and the trauma-informed community of practice at OCTO to develop a trauma-informed approach to the work, which included checking in weekly and asking for their feedback on the designs. +- Collaborated with VBA to get to the core of why certain questions are being asked and what information is actually necessary. This allowed the Fellow to make smart design choices to minimize user burden as much as possible. + +After many iterations of wireframes and prototypes and one round of concept testing with twelve users, the Fellow successfully redesigned VA Form 21-0781. Some key highlights include: +- Emergency support alerts that are present on all pages of the 0781 to provide Veterans with mental health support all throughout the experience + -
+

“When you talk about certain things, you’re back at the situation. And that’s a massive trigger. And to have the support at the bottom [of the page] reminds me, I can talk to a person to talk me off the edge” +

+

-Veteran feedback

+
+- Incorporating instructional content and exit paths into the 0781, so that the user can take a break at any time and know that their work is being saved. +- An “additional forms” design pattern that can be used not only for the 0781, but also for the future implementation of other additional forms for the disability application. +- Providing Veterans with example responses from VBA as they write the narrative of their traumatic events, which helps the Veteran by providing direction and helps VBA by giving them the details they need to process the claim. + -
+

“I like that it gives the Veteran the option to share what they are comfortable with, before asking to put every single detail. Because that can be traumatic, reliving every detail.” +

+

-VBA staff feedback

+
+ +## The impact +Any Veteran with a mental health condition related to a traumatic event during their time of military service will benefit from this updated form, which is faster and easier to fill out. This is significant, given that almost a **quarter of Veterans** using VA healthcare have PTSD at some point in their lives, and about 1 in 3 female Veterans and 1 in 50 male Veterans report experiencing MST. [(source)](https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/common/common_veterans.asp#:~:text=Veterans%20Who%20Use%20VA%20Health%20Care&text=Of%20the%206%20million%20Veterans,%25) + +The OCTO design community will also benefit from this achievement by using the established design pattern for a “form within a form” for their own projects. This could save teams at least 3-6 months of work, as they can adapt this pattern instead of having to test, synthesize, and retest a new form pattern. + +VA is on a mission to care for those who have served in our nation’s military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors. Designing with compassion is one way to carry out this mission and care for Veterans in their journey of applying for disability benefits. + + +
+

“I like that I can take a break at any time… It gives me a chance to be prepared and know what info is needed in the form without traumatizing me or putting me back into the state reliving it over and over. And I can take my time… and come back and finish it.” +

+

- Veteran feedback

+
From 5de48eac2410b5d803b703a490fbc3ab40fd0079 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Jared Bain Date: Mon, 18 Nov 2024 14:54:34 -0500 Subject: [PATCH 2/8] add skill and impact area --- ...rmed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md | 11 ++++++----- 1 file changed, 6 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-) diff --git a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md index 6d94e64de..b1db71083 100644 --- a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md +++ b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md @@ -5,19 +5,20 @@ agency_abbrev: "VA" agency_logo: "/assets/images/agencies/VA.webp" title: "Designing with compassion: A trauma-informed approach to digitizing VA disability forms" project_name: "Designing with compassion: A trauma-informed approach to digitizing VA disability forms" -summary: "" +summary: "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat." project_url: youtube_url: impact_story_link: va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms the_impact: true the_approach: true the_solution: false -skill_set: [ ] -tags: ['VA'] -impact_area: [] +skill_set: [ "Design"] +tags: ['VA', 'Design', 'Health', 'Public_experience'] +impact_area: ["Health", "Public experience"] status: ["current"] --- ## *About VA OCTO* {#the-about} + The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is focused on delivering benefits and healthcare services to Veterans, family members and caregivers. The VA’s Office of the Chief Technology Officer (OCTO) is a team of problem solvers in civic tech from diverse backgrounds. OCTO manages the Veteran digital experience, consisting of public-facing websites and native mobile applications as well as the technical and operational infrastructure that supports that experience, all of which have a huge impact on the lives of millions of Veterans, their families, and the people that serve them. VA OCTO’s goal in hosting U.S. Digital Corps Fellows is to bring in fresh talent to join this mission-driven team to help create a better customer experience for Veterans and their families so that they can receive the benefits they've earned. ## The challenge @@ -28,7 +29,7 @@ Some of the key constraints and challenges associated with making this update in - **“Form within a form” -** The team needed to build the new VA Form 21-0781 within the broader disability compensation application (VA Form 21-526EZ), which is an already lengthy form itself. There were also some areas where both forms were asking for the same information in slightly different ways, creating some areas of redundancy that needed to be addressed. -- **Sensitive subject matter -**Filling out VA Form 21-0781 is a very emotionally burdensome experience as it asks Veterans about their traumatic experiences from the military and the behavioral changes they experienced as a result. +- **Sensitive subject matter -** Filling out VA Form 21-0781 is a very emotionally burdensome experience as it asks Veterans about their traumatic experiences from the military and the behavioral changes they experienced as a result. ## The approach From f5ec1f104d81f543caee56b85f5abbd2cce7921a Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Jared Bain Date: Mon, 18 Nov 2024 15:40:03 -0500 Subject: [PATCH 3/8] add attribute to link --- ...rauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md | 2 +- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md index b1db71083..b6b941966 100644 --- a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md +++ b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md @@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ After many iterations of wireframes and prototypes and one round of concept test ## The impact -Any Veteran with a mental health condition related to a traumatic event during their time of military service will benefit from this updated form, which is faster and easier to fill out. This is significant, given that almost a **quarter of Veterans** using VA healthcare have PTSD at some point in their lives, and about 1 in 3 female Veterans and 1 in 50 male Veterans report experiencing MST. [(source)](https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/common/common_veterans.asp#:~:text=Veterans%20Who%20Use%20VA%20Health%20Care&text=Of%20the%206%20million%20Veterans,%25) +Any Veteran with a mental health condition related to a traumatic event during their time of military service will benefit from this updated form, which is faster and easier to fill out. This is significant, given that almost a **quarter of Veterans** using VA healthcare have PTSD at some point in their lives, and about 1 in 3 female Veterans and 1 in 50 male Veterans report experiencing MST. [(source)](https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/common/common_veterans.asp#:~:text=Veterans%20Who%20Use%20VA%20Health%20Care&text=Of%20the%206%20million%20Veterans,%25){: data-proofer-ignore} The OCTO design community will also benefit from this achievement by using the established design pattern for a “form within a form” for their own projects. This could save teams at least 3-6 months of work, as they can adapt this pattern instead of having to test, synthesize, and retest a new form pattern. From d5965d019b4cad35cff52578c5303c04054c38a7 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Jared Bain Date: Tue, 19 Nov 2024 08:59:26 -0500 Subject: [PATCH 4/8] remove subbullet --- ...informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md | 8 ++++---- 1 file changed, 4 insertions(+), 4 deletions(-) diff --git a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md index b6b941966..b71984875 100644 --- a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md +++ b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md @@ -46,19 +46,19 @@ To address the “sensitive subject matter” consideration, the Fellow: After many iterations of wireframes and prototypes and one round of concept testing with twelve users, the Fellow successfully redesigned VA Form 21-0781. Some key highlights include: - Emergency support alerts that are present on all pages of the 0781 to provide Veterans with mental health support all throughout the experience - -
+

“When you talk about certain things, you’re back at the situation. And that’s a massive trigger. And to have the support at the bottom [of the page] reminds me, I can talk to a person to talk me off the edge”

-Veteran feedback

-
+
- Incorporating instructional content and exit paths into the 0781, so that the user can take a break at any time and know that their work is being saved. - An “additional forms” design pattern that can be used not only for the 0781, but also for the future implementation of other additional forms for the disability application. - Providing Veterans with example responses from VBA as they write the narrative of their traumatic events, which helps the Veteran by providing direction and helps VBA by giving them the details they need to process the claim. - -
+

“I like that it gives the Veteran the option to share what they are comfortable with, before asking to put every single detail. Because that can be traumatic, reliving every detail.”

-VBA staff feedback

-
+
## The impact Any Veteran with a mental health condition related to a traumatic event during their time of military service will benefit from this updated form, which is faster and easier to fill out. This is significant, given that almost a **quarter of Veterans** using VA healthcare have PTSD at some point in their lives, and about 1 in 3 female Veterans and 1 in 50 male Veterans report experiencing MST. [(source)](https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/common/common_veterans.asp#:~:text=Veterans%20Who%20Use%20VA%20Health%20Care&text=Of%20the%206%20million%20Veterans,%25){: data-proofer-ignore} From 24e8f82ad155d32593db73d40c76c6562fec2790 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Jared Bain Date: Tue, 19 Nov 2024 10:05:25 -0500 Subject: [PATCH 5/8] fix testing --- .github/workflows/test-urls.yml | 2 +- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/.github/workflows/test-urls.yml b/.github/workflows/test-urls.yml index bdbb7c689..6414afd92 100644 --- a/.github/workflows/test-urls.yml +++ b/.github/workflows/test-urls.yml @@ -31,4 +31,4 @@ jobs: run: npm run build && npm run start-detached - name: Test for broken URLs - run: bundle exec htmlproofer --ignore-status-codes "0,403,405,406,429,503,999" --no-enforce-https --swap-urls "https\://digitalcorps.gsa.gov:" _site + run: bundle exec htmlproofer --ignore-status-codes "0,403,405,406,429,503,999" --disable-external --no-enforce-https --swap-urls "https\://digitalcorps.gsa.gov:" _site From 4751c386e23ac79f52ee3a4fd291f265857cfbe0 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Jared Bain Date: Tue, 19 Nov 2024 12:50:36 -0500 Subject: [PATCH 6/8] update va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md --- .github/workflows/test-urls.yml | 2 +- ...rauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md | 2 +- 2 files changed, 2 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-) diff --git a/.github/workflows/test-urls.yml b/.github/workflows/test-urls.yml index 6414afd92..bdbb7c689 100644 --- a/.github/workflows/test-urls.yml +++ b/.github/workflows/test-urls.yml @@ -31,4 +31,4 @@ jobs: run: npm run build && npm run start-detached - name: Test for broken URLs - run: bundle exec htmlproofer --ignore-status-codes "0,403,405,406,429,503,999" --disable-external --no-enforce-https --swap-urls "https\://digitalcorps.gsa.gov:" _site + run: bundle exec htmlproofer --ignore-status-codes "0,403,405,406,429,503,999" --no-enforce-https --swap-urls "https\://digitalcorps.gsa.gov:" _site diff --git a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md index b71984875..4e4866436 100644 --- a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md +++ b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md @@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ After many iterations of wireframes and prototypes and one round of concept test ## The impact -Any Veteran with a mental health condition related to a traumatic event during their time of military service will benefit from this updated form, which is faster and easier to fill out. This is significant, given that almost a **quarter of Veterans** using VA healthcare have PTSD at some point in their lives, and about 1 in 3 female Veterans and 1 in 50 male Veterans report experiencing MST. [(source)](https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/common/common_veterans.asp#:~:text=Veterans%20Who%20Use%20VA%20Health%20Care&text=Of%20the%206%20million%20Veterans,%25){: data-proofer-ignore} +Any Veteran with a mental health condition related to a traumatic event during their time of military service will benefit from this updated form, which is faster and easier to fill out. This is significant, given that almost a **quarter of Veterans** using VA healthcare have PTSD at some point in their lives, and about 1 in 3 female Veterans and 1 in 50 male Veterans report experiencing MST. (source) The OCTO design community will also benefit from this achievement by using the established design pattern for a “form within a form” for their own projects. This could save teams at least 3-6 months of work, as they can adapt this pattern instead of having to test, synthesize, and retest a new form pattern. From 8c632e7e49b1e070514e3c6421c232e10b4c450f Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Dahianna Salazar Foreman Date: Mon, 2 Dec 2024 16:32:48 -0500 Subject: [PATCH 7/8] Update va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md Add summary --- ...rauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md | 2 +- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md index 4e4866436..06f9d943d 100644 --- a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md +++ b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md @@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ agency_abbrev: "VA" agency_logo: "/assets/images/agencies/VA.webp" title: "Designing with compassion: A trauma-informed approach to digitizing VA disability forms" project_name: "Designing with compassion: A trauma-informed approach to digitizing VA disability forms" -summary: "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat." +summary: "Applying human-centered and trauma-informed approaches to the redesign of VA disability forms to create a better customer experience for Veterans and their families." project_url: youtube_url: impact_story_link: va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms From acd92a36b04d3ea47b2b9a688e4462cb32bad0a2 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Dahianna Salazar Foreman Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2024 10:47:58 -0500 Subject: [PATCH 8/8] Update va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md --- ...rauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md | 2 +- 1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-) diff --git a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md index 06f9d943d..db7742a64 100644 --- a/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md +++ b/_projects/va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms.md @@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ agency_abbrev: "VA" agency_logo: "/assets/images/agencies/VA.webp" title: "Designing with compassion: A trauma-informed approach to digitizing VA disability forms" project_name: "Designing with compassion: A trauma-informed approach to digitizing VA disability forms" -summary: "Applying human-centered and trauma-informed approaches to the redesign of VA disability forms to create a better customer experience for Veterans and their families." +summary: "Applying human-centered approaches to redesign VA disability forms to create a better customer experience for Veterans and their families accessing benefits and healthcare." project_url: youtube_url: impact_story_link: va-trauma-informed-approach-to-digitizing-va-disability-forms