Boston Scientific Korea
Internship
Creating a Korean website for DBS patients
2021
Overview
During a summer internship with Boston Scientific Korea’s Neuromodulation team, I led the design of a Korean mobile web experience for potential Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) patients and their caregivers.
As team lead, I coordinated regularly with the U.S. headquarters to align design decisions with global standards.
I conducted user research with older adults, the primary target population, to identify accessibility and usability needs. Based on these insights, I designed a localized, patient-centered experience.
Internship Goal
Creation of a Korean mobile web interface experience for DBS patients and caregivers, based on existing U.S/European websites and clinical information.
Project Leadership
Cross-functional Communication was critical throughout the project, with the need to ensure alignment across headquarters, external partners, and internal teams
Main Process
The entire internship process was conducted within its 2 month period.
Project overview meeting with INVENTA(Publishing outsource company)
1.
2.
Meeting with Boston Scientific U.S. Headquarters, Takeover of official website information
3.
User research: Literature review, Persona development, Journey mapping
4.
Web Content Selection
& translation
Information Architecture, Wireframing, Prototyping, Usability Testing
5.
6.
BSK Company review, Submission to INVENTA
Literature Review
Through literature review, I was able to gather important criteria for GUI tailored towards senior(ages over 60) populations.
I decided to benchmark the features for accessibility in the wireframing/ prototyping stages.
Typography
Single sans-serif font
16pt or larger
Color
Contrast ratio of 4:5:1 or higher
Button
Minimum touch target diagonal length of 9.6mm
Icon
Present icons with text
Basic objects, minimize details
Graphics
Simple shapes that clearly convey meaning
Present info comparatively
(before/after, left/right)
Alert
Provide step-by-step buttons for clear info recognition
Lee, G. Y., & Ahn, S. (2021). UI kit design for health care app based on senior information usage. In Proceedings of HCI Korea 2021 (pp. 79–84). The HCI Society of Korea.
Persona & Journey Mapping
Personas were developed based on target user characteristics identified through literature review on older adults’ cognitive, visual, and motor limitations, rather than primary user interviews.
Scenario:
After being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, Youngho searches online to learn about treatment options and discovers the Boston Scientific Korea website.
Through clear navigation and clinical information, he understands DBS, builds confidence, and moves toward contacting BSK.
Opportunities for Website UX
Provide a clear homepage overview
Design a senior-friendly information hierarchy
Enable task-oriented navigation
Develop a structured and searchable Q&A section
Use visual aids and step-by-step explanations
Provide clear next-step guidance
Ensure easy access to contact and support channels
Content Selection
I analyzed multiple company websites and brochures to identify and curate relevant content, and reviewed clinical literature on Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) to understand medical procedures and ensure accurate, user-friendly terminology.
Information Architecture
The website’s information architecture was developed through rigorous content selection and hierarchical structuring, establishing a clear foundation for the wireframing stage.
Prototyping
From IA to wireframing to prototyping, the selected web contents were integrated with the GUI criteria for older adults in the previous literature review to produce a high-fidelity prototype.
Landing page of dbsandme.co.kr
Instances of older user-friendly user experience
All font size over 16pts
Distinct color contrasts following the contrast ratio of 4:5:1 rule
Videos, charts, and photos that illustrates information
Simple and clear icons with text descriptions
Clear information hierarchy and visuals
Explanations of clinical information for non-professionals
1.0 Description for Parkinson's Disease
2.0 Introduction to Deep Brain Stimulation
3.0 Deep dive into Boston Scientific’s DBS system
4.0 Contact & FAQs
All Screens Prototyping Finalized in Figma
End of Internship
The 2-month internship ended with a presentation in front of the entirety of Boston Scientific Korea employees and executives, and the prototype was transferred to INVENTA, the publishing outsourcing company.
The website was later launched as dbsandme.co.kr,
an actual website that was accessible to the public.
The website remained live for 4 years:
2021 September ~ 2025 December.