Intermountain Health Performance Colors made more Accessible
Healthcare
Intermountain Health Performance Colors made more Accessible
Intermountain Health used red and green across the central system to show the performance of patient care. These colors posed a problem for Intermountain employees with red-green color blindness. In addition, Intermountain had recently merged with several other hospital systems, and the performance color palettes needed to be revised and implemented across this new, expanded system.
Work Done
Color Palette updates for Improved Accessibility
Timeframe
Six weeks during October and November 2022
Overview
Initial interviews were done with six employees. Feedback from these interviews informed our thinking and contributed to the initial color palette. Further testing with those initially interviewed informed our final palette selection.
Team member, researcher, and designer
Research
Interviews
After doing six interviews with color-blind employees, they reported having trouble distinguishing differences in the performance metric. I had shown one of the performance metrics with red and green, and they indicated that all the colors blended into one color.
Testing Colors
I used color-blind filters in Adobe Color and Figma. I found that for those with the most common color blindness (Deuteranopia), light red and dark green from the palette looks like the same color.
Problem Statement: The current performance color palette does not work for many of our employees, specifically those with any degree of color blindness. Yet, these metrics are essential to understanding how to improve patient care. For example, when an employee with color blindness looks at a dashboard or graph, they cannot easily understand what level of performance is occurring with the data. They often need to rely on other icons or annotations to understand the results, making the chart too complex for many. They often rely on hover tooltips for digitally interactive graphs, but when those graphs are printed and posted to huddle and performance boards, these employees are then at a disadvantage.
Collaboration to Solve the Problem
I worked with an executive team member, one marketing/communication, and one human resources employee to collaborate on solving this problem. When we first met, not everyone understood the situation. Accessibility issues such as color blindness are common, but those who do not have color blindness often do not understand or know how to empathize. I explained that I had created color-blind palettes for my recent Utah State job and agreed to work on a document showing the problems.
When creating this document, I demonstrated the problem using screenshots of my work with color-blind filters in Adobe Color and Figma. I found that for those with the most common type of color blindness (Deuteranopia), dark red and light green looked like the same color.
I also proposed a new palette with dark and light versions of blue and orange, mimicking the existing red and green palettes with dark and light varieties.
Feedback and Iteration
Feedback
I talked with two employees with color blindness and showed them my proposed palette. They both asked for a complete revision of the palette with four distinct colors. After discussing with the team, I was working with, we decided on a blue, teal, yellow, and orange palette.
Testing of Final Palette
I tested these colors through filters and received feedback from users with color blindness. The final palette worked well, and luminance differences worked as needed. I later created a dark version of this palette with a darker yellow when it is used for text. I also produced examples of using this palette on metrics to show better how it might be implemented.
Executive Approvals and Communicating the Updates
The executive team member took this final palette and the examples to a meeting with the executive leadership team. They approved it and planned to implement this new, accessible palette across Intermountain Health.
The marketing and communication team member was asked to create a slide deck and one-page presentation about the change and why it was implemented. They also published an announcement on the Intranet, highlighting the contribution that I made. These documents used the graphics that I made in Figma. For example, I took a current graph in the red and green palette, and I applied the new palette. I then tested the colors for Deuteranopia on Figma. The color and luminance difference are still clear with the new palette.
