Sonia and Michelle were given a list of conditions and side effects, and tasked to design a series of icons that allows patients to visually understand information about their medicine. The icons will be printed on A4 leaflets in colour or greyscale for patients to take away. These icons needed to accurately visualise each specific condition or symptom, so that people of all health literacy levels can easily understand. The hospital also requested that the character be inclusive and representative of a diverse range of people.
In response to this brief, Blueby was created. Blueby is a gender, racial and body size neutral character who’s loveable and relatable. Sonia and Michelle chose to stick to one character so that patients can form a stronger relationship with Blueby, rather than having multiple icon characters for each representation.
Accurate understanding of medical terms were key to Sonia and Michelle’s design process. Before ideating, they first wrote simplified definitions for each symptom so that they are accurately visualised through the icons. Each icon then went through several iterations based on feedback from different age groups and backgrounds.