Nehashree Tatavarthi is a product designer shaping human insights into visual impact. 

Mobile App Design
OpenGaza
Bridge
Sama
KiddyCare
Cop-Aid

Responsive Design
Cognition at home
Perdue Chicken: The Nugget Prom

Experiential/Sensory Design
Kindergarden
SenseScape


About
Resumé



Previous Project

Cop-Aid
A mobile app to support and train police officers in effectively administering Narcan during Opioid overdose cases.

Collaborative project with Afreen Azad (Graphic Designer).

Role
Visual + Interaction Designer

Timeline
Jan 2023 - Feb 2023 (2 weeks)

Methods
Concept Testing, Desk Research, Figma Prototyping, Logic Flow Diagramming, Research Synthesis & Insights, Sketching, User Interface (UI) Design, User Experience (UX) Design, Visual Design, Wireframing




Key Results
  • Successfully mapped key decision-making points and adapted them to a conceptual working prototype. 

  • Demonstrated a strong ability to iterate and improve upon initial feedback to develop a solution that better fitted the use case scenario. 


Front instructions on the Naloxone paper guide
Back instructions on the paper guide





Narcan used correctly can save lives

Naloxone, or Narcan, is a medicine that rapidly reverses the effects of an Opioid overdose. Available as an over-the-counter nasal spray, it can restore normal respiratory breathing and prevent death when administered in time. 

While Narcan is simple to use, its effectiveness depends on quick, timely action — and the right training. 
Close-up image of the OTC Narcan nasal spray









But how do we ensure that individuals in high-pressure environments are equipped to use Narcan when it matters most?







Timely administration relies on a sound understanding of the instructions

A quick look into the Narcan packaging box, reveals an instruction manual with multiple steps to administering Narcan.

We quickly understood that a dense manual requiring thorough reading is a barrier to police officers who are first responders in high-stress overdose cases.







The challenge we identified underscores a larger issue:


Identified Need

Streamlined instructions so that life-saving actions can be taken under pressure.


 
Problem Statement

“How can we redesign the instructions for administering Narcan more accessible and intuitive for police officers?”

Ultimately, our design should benefit everyone, including civilians who might face an emergency overdose situation.






Introducing Cop-Aid

Cop-Aid is an Naloxone training app that revolutionizes the paper manual, offering an experiential step-by-step guide to administering Naloxone.








Designed for limited mobility and manual dexterity

Observational research revealed that police officers attending to overdosing users have both hands busy at most times. Cop-Aid’s interactions were designed to intentionally overcome this challenge with:



1

Considering haptic constraints with large swipe motions over buttons presses

The decision-making model with “yes” or “no” questions is powered with swipes from right to left. Most crucial actions in the process require swift swipes to proceed.

2

Including large text to increase visibility of instructions


Large sized text helps with brief glances at instructions to quickly absorb information and retain focus on the emergency at hand.

3

Adding bold colors and icons to create a strong contrast between steps


Icons and colors help distinguish between the different stages in the process. Examples include the magnifying glass to identify symptoms, the eye to observe the person’s status, and red for critical actions like CPR.

End-to-end user flow diagram  

Dissecting the current design of the Naloxone paper manual

 The first step to an effective redesign was actively analyzing the design decisions taken to creating the existing paper manual. What we noticed was:



Stage Identification Markers

Help to identify the pre-, during, and post-administration stages.



Bold Action Descriptors

Help to identify key actions required to determine the severity of the overdose.



Instructional Illustrations

Help to provide better context in using the spray and administering Naloxone correctly.






Understanding police behavior and attitudes in overdose cases

The next step in developing a comprehensive solution was to identify the behavioral patterns of our users. We watched bodycam videos of officers and asked ourselves, 

“What does a police officer’s response look like when attending an overdose case?”

“What challenges do they face in these situations?”
 
From the moment they are dispatched to when they arrive on the scene, understanding their emotional and mental state is essential for optimizing how they engage with and follow instructions. 



Bodycam video of a police officer opening Narcan to treat an overdosing user






We narrowed down potential goals for our solution by identifying officers’ needs and their corresponding challenges

A FigJam brainstorming session helped us pinpoint needs and their challenges as identified from observational research.

 We selected one compelling challenge to solve based on competition from existing solutions as well as level of technical feasibility.


We then began exploring ideas that could help improve response time in overdose cases

Our initial sketches focused on condensing information by further dividing the stages into essential actions. 

Keeping the bold action descriptors and illustrations from the manual, we experimented with digital concepts that improved instructional navigation and information retention.










Testing the concept to uncover cracks and challenges in the current design

Our first iteration was a quick start guide with each essential stage in the process divided into their own sections: “Identify”, “Give”, and “Evaluate”.

What differentiated the idea was the “Response Checklist” which allowed each step in every stage to be ticked off as they are completed.


While the visual design helped track progress and break down the steps into digestible elements,



Our biggest pitfall in this design was overlooking the context in which the app would be used.






Police officers are tasked with balancing immense mental stress while making life-altering decisions. So, we pivoted — shifting from a process-oriented user flow to a decision-oriented one.



Drafting logic flows to finalize the end-to-end user experience

Logic flows helped optimize the instruction manual by highlighting critical decision-making points that users might otherwise overlook. 

Based on the recipient’s condition, the flows outlined steps for edge case scenarios: “If yes, then what?“. “If no, then what?”








Reflection

Due to the time constraints that limited us from conducting field research, we found it vital that we did adequate background research and truly grasped the perspectives of police officers with sensitivity and seriousness. 

The lack of focus on aesthetics in visual design made the process challenging as well. I opted for minimalistic layout choices and stayed away from conventional and appealing micro-interactions.


Previous Project