Data timelines as paths of expression for organizational reflection in healthcare participatory design

This paper discusses the early stages of a healthcare participatory design project, where historically recorded ‘hard’ data was used to engage participants in organizational reflection about related (but unrecorded) ‘soft’ data. This uncovered the interconnected history of the organization and allowed participants to collaboratively identify and prioritize design opportunities that could be taken up in subsequent phases of the healthcare design. We share our method for presenting the available recorded data in the form of ‘data timelines’ to start and structure collaborative reflection. We then present the outcomes of our use of this method in the context of the wider healthcare service design project and reflect on the qualities and practicalities of the approach within participatory design.