An expert in healthcare design, Kim applies design methods to complex systems and develops novel solutions to address healthcare’s frontline problems. Specifically, she applies human-centered design and communication methods to build teams, identify opportunities, and tailor interventions to real-world settings so as to accelerate adoption by patients and clinical staff.
Kim’s unique contributions include using design methods with users and stakeholders to make real change in healthcare systems. Examples include working with the National Academy of Medicine and its community leaders across the US to develop a new model for measuring community engagement; working with providers, patients, and operations leaders to help UCM design a new and inclusive hospital-at-home service line; co-leading a grant piloting a tool for low-income, high-risk pregnant women to talk to their obstetricians about prenatal care costs; incorporating design methods into a federal grant to learn how to help hospitals across the country adopt new practices for COPD patients discharged home; and founding the Institute of Healthcare Delivery Design at UIC. Kim has a Master of Design (MDes) from ID and a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and logic from Loyola University Chicago.