Improving Canada's Access to Mental Health & Substance Use Support
Client: Health Canada
Project Goal
Improving the Health Canada section of canada.ca by making mental health and substance use resources accessible and comprehensible. The aim was to analyse the correlation between these areas and determine the value of integrating siloed information & resources. Furthermore, the larger vision is to eventually enhance the user experience by creating a unified platform that centralises these resources, ensuring that support is just a click away.
Challenges
Despite numerous obstacles, we successfully delivered a complete project that was well-received by the client. Some of the key challenges we faced were:
Sensitive Nature of the Subject
Interacting with individuals experiencing mental health and substance use issues demanded a delicate and considerate approach.
Difficulty Recruiting Participants
We faced hurdles in recruiting a suitable audience, but ultimately gathered valuable data from real users.
Tight Timelines and Vast Scope
The project involved testing and analysing a large and complex portion of the website within a very short timeframe.
Methodology
We drove this project using a comprehensive, multi-faceted methodology that included the following key steps:
Background & Analytics Review
Heuristics Analysis
Comparative Analysis
Usability Testing, Contextual Interviews and Recruitment
Diverse set of users participated in usability tests and interviews that helped us gather insights about current and proposed designs, their experiences, challenges, and needs in real-world contexts.
Survey
We hosted a survey on the Health Canada website to collect data from a large pool of real website users to understand needs, preferences, and pain points.
Information Architecture
Rapid Prototyping
Reporting
For each key phase, we drafted comprehensive reports, providing actionable insights for a potential redesign.
Findings
Evidence from our research validated that the relationship between mental health (MH) and substance use (SU) is intricate and interwoven. Both can emerge independently from shared risk factors, or one may drive the other due to self-medication or prolonged stress.
Some key findings from our research indicated:
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While users were pleasantly surprised by the vast amount of information available on the Health Canada website, they were often overwhelmed and lost.
There was a need for more prominent and easily accessible important resources and helplines.
This was primarily because users are looking for resources specific to a scenario which can vary vastly from case to case, and indicated a demand for more personalisation.
Users experienced difficulty in retracing their steps, particularly when information was buried within the site.
Lack of familiarity with keywords, inconsistencies in labels, vague headings and overlapping topics added to confusion, making navigation less intuitive.
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There was often uncertainty regarding the trustworthiness of information on the internet. Users generally trusted the information provided on the Health Canada website due to the perception that governmental sources are free from financial motives. There was also an inclination to speak or connect with people (like professionals, family, friends, peer groups).
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With minimal use of visual aids like images and iconography, information is generally text-heavy instead of being scannable, especially on mobile. Tabular formats are more challenging on mobile as well.
Solutions
Our strategy included the following key solutions:
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As an overarching rule of thumb, we suggested crosslinking all relevant mental health resources on substance use pages to integrate related topics and streamline findability.
We suggested incorporating guided search on the website with targeted questions to assist users in locating specific information efficiently.
Additionally, the use of comprehensive filters on resource pages can help users quickly narrow down their options based on personal criteria (e.g., postal code, free resources).
Expanding city and province specific content on the website improves access by reaching people living in areas with limited resources.
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In addition to consistent use of labels and plain language across the website for better clarity and understandability.
We advised breaking down complex information into digestible chunks to improve readability and scannability and incorporating visual elements where possible to make content less intimidating.
We recommended ensuring consistent content structure throughout the site to match user expectations and provide a familiar navigation experience.
We suggested adding alert banners on relevant pages to direct users to key resources to improve visibility and access.
Impact
Stakeholder Appreciation
We received positive feedback from stakeholders who acknowledged the team's dedication and the meaningful impact of our work despite tight deadlines.
Validation and Participant Response
We provided targeted recommendations and suggested an improved information architecture, in order to integrate both topics more cohesively.
The updates were well-received during the validation round of testing, with participants appreciating the clearer, more intuitive navigation and noted it effectively captured the close relationship between mental health and substance use, facilitating a more holistic understanding of these issues.
Diverse Engagement and Benchmarking
Engaging with a diverse demographic provided us with a deep understanding and accurate reflection of the needs of various user groups. Additionally, we established a baseline understanding of the Health Canada website's existing experience and offerings and evaluated them against other global institutions.