Survey Says

SO, I went to Alma Via old folks home to get a better handle on how to improve prescription packaging and labels by making them more inclusive. Because of the nature of my project my survey was mostly qualitative instead of quantitative. Here where my survey questions.

•How many prescription medications do you take?

•Where do you get your prescriptions?

•How often (per day) do you use prescriptions?

•How do you identify your different medications?

•Where do you keep your medication?

•Have you ever had a mishap with your medication? What happened?

•What is the most important information on your prescription label?

•How do you get your directions for taking your prescription?

•What is the hardest part, opening, remembering, understanding or identifying, your prescriptions?

•What is the form of your prescription packaging? What do you like or dislike about it?

I went with Prof. Chu's DAI 400 class, and only had the opportunity to speak to 2 people, and durning our conversations we often got off track. I found it more helpful to just talk with them about their prescriptions and how they use them.

The big problems I discovered, besides the obvious label readability, happened when the seniors had to take multiple medications. They trouble telling which ones where which, and because they couldn't read the labels,  sometimes didn't know how to take them.

Final Refined Problem Purpose statement

So I decided to do the prescription  medication packaging problem, here's my refined problem purpose statement.

Problem

Prescription medication labels and packaging are often hard to decipher, which may lead to incorrect use.

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to develop new prescription medication packaging that is easy to operate and comprehend.

Bibliography Draft

Bernard, Sarah. "The Perfect Prescription." WashingtonPost.Com. 11 Apr. 2005. 20 Feb. 2008 .

Edelson, Ed. "Prescription Labels Often Misunderstood." WashingtonPost.Com. 1 Dec. 2006. 20 Feb. 2008 .

Gill, Bob. Unspecial Effects for Graphic Designers. New York: Graphics, Inc., 2001.

Heller, Steven, and Louise Fili. Typology. San Francisco: Chronical Books, 1999.

Herriot, Luke. Designer's Packaging Bible: Creative Solutions for Outstanding Design. East Sussex: RotoVision, 2007.

Levey, Marissa. "Study Finds Medication Labels are 'Confusing';." USA Today 11 Dec. 2006, Final ed., sec. D De Jong: 5d. 20 Feb. 2008.

Lipton, Ronnie. The Practical Guide to Information Design. Hoboken: Wiley, 2007.

"Prescription Labels Geared Toward Pharmacies, Not Patients." Drug Week 21 Sept.-Oct. 2007. 20 Feb. 2008.

Robin, Williams. The the Non-Designer's Type Book. Berkeley: Peach Pit P, 2005.

Samara, Timothy. Making and Breaking the Grid. Gloucester: Rockport, Inc., 2002.

Stafford, Cliff. 50 Trade Secrets of Great Design Packaging. Beverly: Rockport, Inc., 1999.

"Study Finds Many Patients Do Not Understand Prescription Medicine Labels." Drug Week 22 Dec. 2006. 20 Feb. 2008.

Text & Table Layout. Tokyo: Pie Books, 2007.

Thomas, Gregory. How to Design Logos, Symbols and Icons: 24 Internationally Renowned Studios Reveal How They Develop Trademarks for Print and New Media. Cincinnati: How Design Books, 2003.


Wolf, Gregory. Type Recipes. Cincinnati: North Light Books, 1991.

Wurman, Richard S., and Robert Jacobson. Information Design. Cambridge: The MIT P, 2000.

505 Blog Take 2-The problem with problem statements

So after a few false starts, I'm trying blogspot to take care of my 505 blogging needs.

Here's the nitty gritty, I have two problem/purpose statements that I are vying for my coveted research. One is about prescription medication packaging, which I found out somebody already did, but I think I could better. The other is producing an easier to use MUNI/public transportation map. Here's the drafts I have of the two.

Problem Statement t#1:
Prescription medication labels and packaging are often hard to decipher, which may lead to incorrect use.


Purpose Statement:

The purpose of this study is to develop new prescription medication packaging that is easy to operate and comprehend.
a. Users, Stakeholders, Beneficiaries

The main beneficiaries of this study and it’s resulting product would be the elderly, since they generally suffer from the most aliments that are treated by prescriptions. Other beneficiaries would be anybody else who will be using prescription medication.


b. Environment, Location

The location where this product would be used is anywhere one would take their prescription medication.


c. References, Resources

References would be sources on the subjects of legibility, iconography and packaging design. Other resources would be the Center for Elder and Youth in America, experienced graphic designers, prescriptions users and pharmacisits.


Problem #2:
SF MUNI underground maps are difficult to understand, especially to those not already familiar with San Francisco’s geography.

Purpose Statement:
The purpose of this study to design a new SF MUNI map that will be easy to navigate for those unfamiliar with the City.

a. Users, Stakeholders, Beneficiaries
The primary beneficiaries of a redesigned MUNI map would be visitors and people who are new to San Francisco. People from San Francisco traveling via MUNI to unfamiliar locations will also benefit.

b. Environment, Locations
The locations of the MUNI maps will primarily be inside a MUNI station, at various San Francisco reference/information desks and online.

c. References, Resources
References would be sources on the subjects of legibility, iconography and packaging design. Other resources would be the MUNI agency, MUNI riders, those unfamiliar with the city of San Francisco, and graphic designers.

So far I'm leaning towards the medication packaging, because I think it has more potential for improvement and helping others.

BTW.. I got a new toy