Scale, Scope, Speed: Reflections on a Multi-site Covid-19 Study

Designers have a unique role to play in public health, but their involvement requires an examination their practices and methods for their fit with this new context. This article reflects on the experiences of a multi-site design team collaborating across the US and Canada to explore early-stage Covid-19 patient recovery experiences. A unique feature of this project is that it was conceived of, led by, and executed by designers situated in health systems and health research units working in diverse geographies to jointly investigate a public health phenomenon at a broad scale. We discuss three challenges to design practice encountered in this context—scale, scope, and speed. Lastly, we draw from the design teams’ cross-sector expertise to pose key questions for design as it migrates to the public health sector.