Overview

In 2022, Included Health launched the Black Community Innovation Coalition (BCIC), a first-of-its-kind partnership with seven employers to co-design a care concierge and navigation platform that better serves the Black community. The goal was to close trust gaps, address cultural mismatches in care, and surface actionable paths toward health equity—grounded in lived experience.

What I did

I helped lead a multi-phase research effort across six months to uncover unmet needs and inform product direction:

Partnered with seven BCIC employers to frame research goals and ensure alignment across diverse employee populations

Facilitated 14 focus groups with 43 participants to explore themes of distrust, systemic harm, and cultural disconnection in care

Co-led survey design, data analysis, and synthesis of over 3,200 responses, including segmentation across income levels and employer populations

Collaborated with Black clinicians and physician execs to review materials for cultural sensitivity, clinical relevance, and representation

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Outcomes

Identified a clear mandate for trust-first design, culturally competent care navigation, and access to credible educational resources

Influenced product strategy to include a vetted provider list with a focus on maternal and mental health

Initiated plans for community-centered content and checklists to support self-advocacy and system navigation

Set the foundation for a dedicated health equity offering tailored to the needs of Black members—shaped directly by their voices

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This work strengthened my belief in design’s role as a tool for equity and reinforced the need to center community insight in every step of the innovation process.

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