“Kate helped us make sense of an incredibly complex space. Her structured discovery and thoughtful insights gave us clarity on where to focus and how to move forward.”
Biz/Org
Carina
Year
2024
Social Impact
UX Research
Project Overview
Carina had an ambitious goal: expand their platform to better support caregivers in Washington state seeking Medicaid-covered respite care. They brought me in to lead early discovery, define user needs, and chart a path forward.
My role blended policy research, product strategy, and UX thinking - working closely with internal teams, union reps, and caregivers themselves to map out how respite care works (and often doesn’t). I delivered a Medicaid-aligned roadmap, usability-informed prototypes, and a presentation deck to use in state partnership conversations.
Project Goals
How might we help unpaid caregivers of medically fragile people find the right support without guilt, overwhelm, or fear?
Respite isn’t just logistics - it’s an emotional leap. Many caregivers had never taken a break before. They weren’t just navigating schedules, but stigma, exhaustion, and a deep fear of leaving loved ones in someone else’s hands. Our goal was to make it feel safe to ask for help.
Identified psychological and systemic blockers to seeking time off
Bridged Medicaid policy with real-world caregiving dynamics
Positioned features to build confidence (reliable backups, transparent profiles, urgent need flags)
Treated caregiver relief as a human right, not a workflow edge case
Challenges
Most platforms treat respite as “just another job post,” ignoring urgency, emotional labor, and the caregiver’s point of view
Caregivers had no way to request backup - only care seekers can post jobs
Medicaid rules varied across counties and programs, with complex eligibility requirements and unclear reimbursement flows
Providers often ghosted interviews for respite roles, creating trust and reliability gaps
Internal language around “relief” and “respite” lacked clarity, causing confusion in UI and filters
Solutions
Created new caregiver-first flows for requesting fill-in help, including emergency, short-term, and recurring needs
Designed filters and flags for caregiver profiles to surface respite availability, reliability, and specific qualifications
Delivered a visual Medicaid policy map to help internal teams understand rules, timelines, and constraints
Introduced clearer UI copy and interaction logic around time-bound care, backup roles, and urgent needs
Facilitated workshops and prototype reviews that reshaped internal understanding of respite care as a relational, not just logistical, problem
Outcome & Impact
By the end of the engagement, we had:
A state-ready deck that Carina used to advocate for platform investment
A feature roadmap tied to Medicaid regulations and user pain points
New language and filters now shaping how caregivers and consumers post jobs and define availability
The work not only positioned Carina to serve thousands of caregivers needing relief - it also gave them the infrastructure to expand care modalities beyond standard home health.
