Pippa, for patients

The patient app is a companion, not a chart. Every screen is checked against one rule: it must not make eating feel like a score.

Patients open a small pixel room. They photograph a meal, check in on mood, write a journal, and can message a clinician after both sides have signed. I designed that loop so the useful clinical data still exists without the patient having to look at it.

Problem

Calorie apps and clinical journals both fail this audience. One turns food into a contest. The other feels like homework and gets deleted in two weeks. The person is often logging while anxious. A red state, a starving pet, or a streak that breaks in public is harm, not motivation.

Process

I wrote the rules before the screens. No calorie numbers on the patient side. The pet does not get thin or cry if a meal is missed. Streaks have rest days. Coins come from spending time in care, not from eating less. Crisis language routes to 988 or 911 and the model does not continue the conversation as advice. Clinician conversations, 229 of them, told us which check-ins were actually used between visits.

Solution

• Primary loop: plus button, photo of the meal, pet reacts. If the photo is late, a typed note or a voice note is the same action. The calorie read happens and is never drawn.
• Check-in tab for pre-meal and post-meal surveys the clinic can edit. Calendar for a month of entries. Heart for mood. Journal stays on the device.
• Shop for hats, rooms, and music, bought with coins. Calm Corner holds a breathing guide and a “speak to yourself like a friend” exercise, separate from the meal log so soothing is not a reward for restriction.
• Messaging a clinician is behind a signed agreement. The AI chat is a different button, on the pet, and it will not discuss calories, weight, or how to compensate for a meal.

Results

• 10K+ Daily active users in the product
• 0 Calorie figures in the patient UI
• 2 Surveys, both editable by the clinic
• 988 The only response to a crisis mention

Justin Moran · UI/UX Designer · Chicago, IL · LinkedIn · Resume (PDF)