3M Express Therapy Portal

User Research Driving Platform Transformation

  • Solventum Corporation (formerly 3M Healthcare) launched as an independent company in April 2024 following its spin off from 3M. Headquartered in Maplewood, MN, the company is diversified healthcare technology organization with over 20,000 employees globally. Solventum maintains an extensive portfolio spanning surgical wound care, food safety, oral care, healthcare digital systems and biopharma filtration solutions.

  • At 3M, I worked as part of the Medical Solutions Division (MSD) team and the Food Safety Division (FSD) for the Healthcare Business Group. I got to lead and support several design projects working on UX, hard goods and service design projects, with a particular focus onadvanced and digital wound care.

    • In field ethnographic research sessions in clinics across the US. Curated and synthesized the insights and data collected. 

    • Planned and led multiple rounds of UX user testing sessions. Synthesized insights which guided the re-design of 3M medical software and products. 

    • Led design research efforts for NPI/NTI initiative, translating user needs from medical specialists from across the USA and Europe. 

Overview

Following the KCI acquisition, the Medical Solutions Division was tasked with re-launching the inherited Express Therapy Portal - an online e-commerce platform that supports internal sales teams and healthcare providers in managing negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) for chronic wounds. This presented an opportunity to comprehensively redesign the portal's branding, system workflows, and user experience from the ground up.

I inherited this initiative and led the UX research efforts for this high-stakes redesign, conducting multiple rounds of user testing with internal stakeholders including sales representatives, managers, customer service teams, and order processors. Through systematic research synthesis and detailed reporting at each testing phase, I collaborated closely with UX designers to inform design decisions that would modernize the front-end technology infrastructure and streamline the ordering process.

3M™ Express Therapy Portal launched in November 2023, and is expected to handle over $400 million in annual revenue.

My Role

UX Researcher (1 of 1)

Responsibilities

UX Research & Strategy

Collaborators

Sr. Design Researcher, UX Designers, Industrial Designers

Duration

7 Months

Research Goals

  1. Modernize Technology Infrastructure: Evaluate user needs and technical requirements to support the strategic modernization of antiquated backend systems, enabling future platform enhancements and scalability

  2. Create Consistent User Experience: Research user workflows across three legacy products to design a unified portal system that consolidates varying features, experiences, and order requirements into a cohesive platform

  3. Improve Ease of Doing Business: Understand customer pain points and fast-paced work environments to design intuitive, learnable interfaces that address the #1 customer request and support rapid software adoption

  4. Optimize Order Processing Efficiency: Identify opportunities to convert current phone and fax-based workflows to digitizing orders and therapy management. That will reduce manual touchpoints, minimize errors, and improve revenue recognition through increased digital adoption.

Legacy Solutions

The legacy 3M Express website launched in 2007, followed by the iOnHealing and iOnSupport apps in 2016. While incremental improvements had been made over the years, these platforms no longer met current customer experience expectations. Each system served different primary user groups with overlapping but isolated functionalities, creating fragmented workflows and inconsistent experiences. The business identified a critical need for a unified, comprehensive solution that would serve as a single point of access for all users.

Resultant Product

The new 3M Express Therapy Portal, launched in 2023, delivers significant workflow optimization through a unified design language and intuitive order processes. By incorporating comprehensive user feedback, the platform provides a modernized interface that reduces ordering errors through digitization, streamlines documentation management with integrated upload and storage capabilities, and creates a seamless user experience across all customer touchpoints.

Above, is the blueprint that maps out the very intricate home order process - starting from when a physician assesses the patient, orders a wound VAC, until the VAC has been used and returned to the Service Center (where the devices are returned for maintenance and sanitation).

On the right is a super simple visual representation of who and how people would interact with the 3M Express Therapy Portal.

What is the 3M Express Therapy Portal?

The negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) portfolio includes VAC equipment, tubing, dressings, and related supplies that physicians and healthcare providers rent for patient treatment. After therapy is complete, VAC devices are returned to service centers for quality assurance and refurbishment.

The Express Therapy Portal serves as the central online platform where clinicians and sales representatives manage the entire wound care process; from patient documentation and information management to ordering and dispatching NPWT supplies and VAC devices. Following 3M's acquisition of KCI, we were tasked with modernizing this inherited portal and rebranding it to align with 3M's design standards and user experience expectations.

Stakeholder Mapping for Comprehensive Design

When redesigning the 3M Express Therapy Portal, identifying all stakeholders was essential to ensure our design solutions addressed the needs of the broadest user base. Understanding each person's role and level of involvement in the order process was critical for creating an inclusive, effective platform.

The order process can involve up to eight different people or teams depending on various factors such as order complexity, customer type, and care setting. This visual represents the typical stakeholders encountered in the standard order workflow, providing a foundation for user-centered design decisions.

Research Process & Methodology

This project employed a multi-phase user research approach with internal stakeholders across the Express Therapy Portal ecosystem, including sales representatives, managers, customer service representatives, and order processors. Through iterative testing cycles, we validated design decisions and ensured the redesigned platform met diverse user needs across different fidelity levels.

Who we spoke to: Sales Representatives, Managers, Customer Service Representatives, and Order Processors

Research Approach: I conducted three comprehensive rounds of user testing, progressing from low-fidelity concepts to high-fidelity interactive prototypes. All sessions were conducted remotely, utilizing Miro for wireframe testing and Figma for prototype validation. Each research phase concluded with detailed findings reports shared with the UX team to inform design iterations

Note: I assumed lead researcher responsibilities beginning with Stage 2, building upon the foundational discovery work completed in Stage 1.

Stage 1 Stakeholder & Touchpoint Discovery

Objective: Establish foundational understanding of the current system and user ecosystem

  • Mapped existing software functionality and user workflows

  • Identified primary users, their goals, and core system functions

  • Documented the current purpose and scope of the Express Therapy Portal

  • Established baseline understanding for design requirements

Stage 2 Low-Fidelity Wireframe Testing (Miro)

Objective: Validate initial workflow concepts and information architecture

  • Conducted virtual user testing sessions using static wireframe screenshots

  • Focused on understanding user mental models for order processes and system navigation

  • Gathered insights on workflow preferences and functional requirements

  • Delivered comprehensive research report with actionable design recommendations

Stage 3 Interactive Low-Fidelity Prototype Testing (Figma)

Objective: Test workflow functionality and interaction patterns

  • Participants completed realistic task scenarios using interactive prototypes

  • Participants were encouraged to think-aloud to capture user decision-making processes

  • Validated navigation structures and core functionality flows

  • Identified usability issues and optimization opportunities through detailed research analysis

Stage 4 High-Fidelity Prototype Validation (Figma)

Objective: Validate design refinements and new brand integration

  • Tested implemented feedback from previous research phases

  • Evaluated new 3M branding integration and visual design effectiveness

  • Conducted final usability validation through realistic task completion

  • Confirmed readiness for development handoff through comprehensive user validation

Key Takeaways:

  • Problems with Workflow - Participants were actually frustrated with the order process, rather than the original therapy portal’s order input system

  • Tedious Manual Processes - Fragment systems, often resulted in duplicative efforts and manual processing to move an order further along in the process

  • Lack of Automated Order Updates - Order information and requirements were all manual. Phone calls, Teams chats, emails and texts were frequently used to complete tasks like releasing an order

  • Overburdened Sales Reps - Sales reps were especially frustrated due to the high volume of requests, as they managed both, their own orders and those placed by customers

  • Documentation Challenges - Many clinical documents are required for insurance approval and payment, and without EMR integration, clinicians are forced to print and fax to submit documents.

Impact

Significant Revenue Stream

Digital channels facilitated $420M in revenue processing during 2021, demonstrating the platform’s critical role in business operations

Institutional Reliance

Acute care institutions relied heavily on digital ordering, with 95% of hospital and skilled nursing facility orders processed through the Therapy Express Portal platform

High User Engagement

The legacy Express platform maintained over 40,000 monthly active users, indicating strong market penetration and user dependency

Home Healthcare Digital Adoption

~60% of home health orders passed through one of the 3 former 3M/KCI digital channels. These orders will now flow through 3M Express Therapy Portal.

Refine, Build, Test, Repeat

We conducted 4 rounds of prototype testing, refining key sections of the site. Research insights were used to write epics and user stories for development. The new version was launched as 3M Express Therapy Portal in November of 2023.

After 3M Healthcare split to form Solventum, the 3M Express Therapy Portal was rebranded and is currently live as Solventum Express Therapy Portal.

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